Leicester City: King Power urged to ‘repair the damage’ as Russell Martin era looms | OneFootball

The Foxes' hierarchy has come under intense scrutiny in recent years

Leicester City's fall from grace within the past 10 years has been spoken about at length, with the Foxes now gearing up for just a second-ever season in League One.

Indeed, a decade ago, the Foxes achieved one of, if not the greatest underdog story in the history of football, and even perhaps modern-day sport as a whole.

A year on from completing one of the most dramatic of 'great escape' acts in the history of the Premier League in Nigel Pearson's final campaign as manager at the King Power Stadium, the East Midlands outfit, under his successor, Claudio Ranieri, went on to lift the top-flight title, despite being the subject of 5000-1 odds to do so at the beginning of the campaign.

Since then, though, chaos has certainly ensued in LE2, albeit the subsequent years were still relatively successful, with the club going on to win the FA Cup for the first time in 2021, as well as making the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals and Conference League semi-finals in 2016/17 and 2021/22 respectively.

However, Leicester have since suffered relegation in three of the four seasons which have followed, with a Championship title-winning season sandwiched inbetween.

Indeed, the Foxes were not the only side to be relegated to League One in 2025/26 against a backdrop of financial uncertainty, with Sheffield Wednesday also being deducted 18 points in comparison to Leicester's six, whilst it was ESTIMATED that ownership group, King Power, were still paying out the highest wage bill in the second tier at a weekly figure of £820,500.

As such, Football League World quizzed our Leicester City fan pundit, Jamie Preston, about whether the consortium is able to take the club forward again.

Leicester City told they need a 'complete reset' with under-fire owners King Power

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It has been well-documented that Leicester supporters have protested against the club's hierarchy at various points of the season, with current owner, Aiyawatt 'Top' Srivaddhanaprabha and chief football officer, Jon Rudkin, feeling the heat way more than others at present.

The former has had control of Leicester ever since the tragic passing of his father, Vichai, in October 2018, with the club's supporters still remembering his contributions to their unexpected glory years in so many ways.

With King Power operating in the duty-free sector, the company took a major financial hit in the COVID-19 pandemic due to the suspension of flights, and this, alongside two costly relegations, the first of which saw several high earners and big-money additions leave for no return fees, have significantly impacted the club's current financial situation.

Discussing their tenure and the future with FLW, Preston said: "King Power and Leicester City used to go hand-in-hand with each other.

"Ever since they came to Leicester in 2011, absolutely fantastic, and they worked wonders for us.

"The last few years, since COVID, they seem to be losing money, hand over fist with the duty-free, because no one was flying," he added.

"I don't think they've been able to recover the business side of King Power since then, and I think they're struggling to put in the backing that Leicester need. I know 'Top' has put his own money into the club to cover debts.

"Are they the right people to take us forward? My honest opinion, I'm very 50/50 on it," Preston explained.

"He's backed us all the way. Yes, money is very tight and our financial problems are well-known across the world, it seems.

"We used to be one of the best-run clubs in the world," he claimed. "Everyone used to look up to us and say 'that's how you run a club'. But the last few years haven't been done that way.

"I think they need to have a complete reset now the business side is starting to come back in recent years.

"As we all know, in business, it takes time to build up again.

"Hopefully they can repair the damage they've done. We just need to back the new manager and the players for the new season," Preston stated.

"I think they should be given a chance to get themselves out of the hole they've dug."

Leicester City's financial woes mean League One success is critical

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With the Foxes' current financial situation well-documented, a major rebuild is on the cards, but the likelihood is immediate success in League One is to be expected.

As well as releasing 10 players, the likes of Abdul Fatawu, Jeremy Monga, Ben Nelson and Caleb Okoli have all attracted high-profile transfer interest as Russell Martin's appointment as head coach was finalised in place of Gary Rowett, with the former MK Dons, Swansea City and Southampton boss signing a three-year contract.

There had been claims that City would also be operating with an initial £10m budget, and whilst this is nowhere near the money that was available at the King Power during those successful times, it is still extremely substantial in comparison to all divisional rivals, signalling the intent of those within the higher-ups.