OFFICIAL: Former Premier League champion relegated twice consecutively

Leicester City has officially dropped to League One just 10 years after their miraculous Premier League title.

The failure to defeat Hull City at King Power Stadium on Tuesday evening confirmed that "The Foxes" must play in England's third-tier league, only the second time in the club's history.

Despite two consecutive goals within minutes from Jordan James and Luke Thomas, manager Gary Rowett's squad could not secure the necessary victory as the match ended 2-2.

This result makes Leicester the latest club to suffer two consecutive relegations, after they also left the Premier League last season. Returning to League One is the consequence of a disastrous season, where the team faced a points deduction, managerial changes, financial difficulties, and endured a 17-match winless streak in the domestic league.

Leicester began the season under former Queens Park Rangers manager, Marti Cifuentes. The Spanish coach was appointed in mid-July, just three weeks after Ruud van Nistelrooy was dismissed.

Cifuentes started positively, placing Leicester in 4th position by mid-October, though performances were not entirely convincing. However, things quickly deteriorated as he secured only six more league wins thereafter and was ultimately sacked following a 1-2 loss to Oxford United.

Leicester continued to delay finding a replacement, with former midfielder Andy King taking temporary charge. Yet, he could only lead the team to four consecutive defeats, including a shocking 3-4 loss to Southampton after leading 3-0.

Current manager Gary Rowett was appointed until the end of the season but achieved only one win in 11 matches. The 0-1 defeat to Portsmouth last weekend nearly pushed Leicester to the brink of relegation.

The 6-point deduction from EFL in February worsened the situation, after the club was found guilty of breaching PSR financial regulations in 2023/24 and failed in appeal. Nevertheless, even without the deduction, Leicester would still be in the relegation zone, two points from safety, meaning their fate was almost inevitable.

The Midlands club will conclude the season with a home match against Millwall on Friday evening, before traveling to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers in the final round, a clash between two former Premier League champions.

Attention now turns to Leicester's journey back to League One. Their last appearance in the third tier was in the 2008/09 season, when they promptly promoted the following season under manager Nigel Pearson.