Leicester fans demand change as Rowett urges action after relegation

April 22, 2026 No Comments

Leicester fans demand change as Rowett urges decisive actionImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Among the chants of discontent among fans were calls for Khun Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha’s King Power Group to sell the clubByAndrew AloiaBBC Sport, East MidlandsPublished1 hour ago114 Comments

Leicester City fans gathered outside King Power Stadium to demand change after the club were relegated to League One just 10 years after their famous Premier League title win.

There had been boos from supporters during Tuesday’s 2-2 draw with Hull City that sealed the Foxes’ fate, but there was a largely gloomy – almost resigned – atmosphere throughout a game played in front of stands in which a huge amount of seats were left empty.

Those feelings intensified outside the ground, with a series of players lambasted when they emerged, while there were renewed calls for chief football officer Jon Rudkin to leave the club and owner Khun Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha to sell up.

Khun Top, as well as manager Gary Rowett, listened to what some fans had to say, with the owner also issuing a statement, external saying there were “no excuses” for dropping to the third tier a decade after the 5,000-1 Premier League title win, and just five years on from lifting the FA Cup.

“Responsibility sits with me,” mentioned Khun Top when he addressed the club’s third relegation in four years.

“We have experienced the highest highs and now the lowest lows, and the pain is shared by all of us.

“I am truly sorry for the disappointment we have caused.

“I understand the strength of feeling among our supporters, and we do not take your support for granted, especially at moments like this.”

Leicester relegated to League One after Hull draw
How Leicester went from champions to League One in a decade

Khun Top went on to say “necessary decisions” will be made to “rebuild, improve and restore the standards expected” at Leicester.

Manager Rowett, who succeeded Marti Cifuentes in February, had 14 games to save the club from the drop. They were relegated after 12.

Leicester had already been docked six points for historical spending breaches when Rowett took the job, but the 52-year-old told BBC Radio Leicester he “will be the first to hold myself accountable” for the part he played in the relegation.

But Rowett is just one of six permanent bosses to have been involved in the club’s three recent relegations.

It started with FA Cup-winning manager Brendan Rodgers, who was replaced by Dean Smith in 2022-23, while Steve Cooper was succeeded by Ruud van Nistelrooy last term.

Enzo Maresca, the only manager to see out an entire campaign in the past four seasons, oversaw 31 wins when he guided Leicester to the Championship title two years ago.

Since then, Leicester have won just 17 of 82 league matches to suffer back-to-back relegations.

Rowett is contracted until the end of the season and was evasive about his future, saying only that “anyone would like the challenge and like to rebuild” Leicester.

He did add that the club’s hierarchy “need to act decisively” after relegation.

“In order to bounce back quickly, of course any club in this position, you have to learn the lessons and make sure those things don’t happen again,” mentioned Rowett.

“I’m not saying I’ve had assurances at all – that is not my remit. It’s for the club to decide on what they do, and this is my opinion of how decisive you might need to be before the start of next season to make sure you hit the ground running.”

Financial cuts in the tens of millions of pounds will need to be made at a club which has revealed huge losses in recent years, and hugely overspent on what will surely rank as the most expensive squad with the highest wage bill to be relegated from the Championship.

Some high-earners are out of contract in the summer – including captain Ricardo Pereira, Patson Daka and Jordan Ayew – but others will need to be moved on.

It was revealed earlier this season that Harry Winks, a player strongly criticised after a foul-mouthed exchange with one fan last week, previously had his deal extended beyond this season, while Jannik Vestergaard and Wout Faes – who is on loan at Monaco – are also among the players who will remain on lucrative contracts.

“There will be a natural freshening up of the club in terms of the playing squad,” Rowett mentioned.

“At every football club across the land, regardless of if you are relegated or not, there will always be a couple of players that feel a fresh start will benefit them and maybe the club feel a fresh start will benefit them.

“I won’t get into the semantics of which players they are.”

‘Leicester were everyone’s second club’

Rowett spoke to assembled media in a room in which the impassioned voices of fans could be heard outside the ground.

The noise was constant when Hull assistant coach Dean Holden spoke in a media conference in which he expressed sympathy for the Foxes.

“It’s a wonderful football club, it’s just such a shame to see where they are,” he mentioned.

“They were everyone’s second-favourite team 10 years ago when they won the Premier League and it’s just so sad to see they’ve dropped off.

“Supporters have been through the mill I’m sure and obviously there is a lot of frustration on their part.”

Rowett mentioned he could “understand the frustration” of fans, saying it is “incredibly extreme” to win the Premier League 10 years ago to “then have this low”.

“It absolutely hurts,” Rowett told BBC Sport.

“It’s a nice narrative because of the Premier League, but I don’t think it resonates any more than anyone else getting relegated to League One.

“Of course it’s a bigger story, and of course it’s going to get a lot more coverage, but ultimately the pain for any fan that gets relegated is probably quite similar.”