What would have happened if Leicester City appointed Emma Hayes in 2023 according to AI | OneFootball

Gary Lineker has revealed that he put the USWNT head coach forward to lead the Foxes in 2023

Leicester City are now preparing for just their second-ever season at League One level following the recent appointment of Russell Martin on a three-year contract at the King Power Stadium.

10 years ago, the Foxes achieved the most miraculous of footballing achievements by winning the Premier League, but a run of several decisions that have had a negative impact on the club in recent times, both on and off the pitch, have culminated in such an unwanted predicament.

Two seasons ago, Leicester were able to bounce back from their first fall back into the Championship in nine years by winning the division under the management of newly-appointed Manchester City boss, Enzo Maresca, but were immediately relegated back to the EFL for the second time in three seasons in 2024/25 amid a backdrop of major financial issues.

The East Midlands outfit were then hit with a six-point deduction earlier in 2026, which played a major role in the club becoming the second outfit in as many seasons to suffer back-to-back relegations from the top-flight to League One after Luton Town.

As such, it is expected that the club will lose several high earners that have remained on their books at the official start date of 2026/27, namely Ghana international, Abdul Fatawu.

Of course, in a different world, Leicester fans will have hoped that, even if relegation occurred, the club wasn't in such a desperate financial state, and Gary Lineker, during his coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2026, revealed that he put forward the suggestion that Emma Hayes should have led the Foxes into their eventual league-winning term under Maresca.

Gary Lineker reveals Emma Hayes conversation with Leicester City board in 2023

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Lineker, 65, of course, is arguably Leicester's most high-profile supporter, having also spent the first years of his glittering club and international career at his hometown club before signing for Everton in 1985.

The former England striker and Match of the Day host is currently providing coverage of the World Cup on Netflix for his 'The Rest is Football' podcast and series, in which Hayes, who now coaches the USWNT, has appeared as a guest.

Hayes is best-known for her success in charge of Chelsea Women, where she secured seven Women's Super League titles, including five on the bounce between 2020 and 2024.

Towards the end of that timeframe, Leicester had been relegated back to the second tier after a season where Dean Smith had replaced Brendan Rodgers on a short-term contract, but wasn't kept on, leading to the appointment of Maresca.

However, in a fresh revelation, Lineker told Hayes: "When Leicester got relegated for the first time [from the Premier League in 2023], I called Susan Whelan, who was the then CEO of Leicester – who is no longer there, sadly – and I called her to say, 'I think you should go for Emma as the Leicester City coach'.

"And I was going, 'I think for many reasons. A: obviously, she's clearly a brilliant coach – so it's not like some kind of PR stunt' – although PR-wise, I think it would have been brilliant: the first female manager of a professional men's team in our country. And I think we [Leicester] had the players that you'd have done really well with," he added.

"And she said, 'I think that's a really good idea... but I'm not quite sure the owners are ready to make that step yet.

"So, I just wonder if you'd have been interested in that at all – but that is honestly the truth," Lineker affirmed.

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In 2024, Hayes received one of two inaugural Johan Cruyff awards as being seen as the best women's coach at the yearly Ballon d'Or ceremony, further showcasing her impact on the game.

And, according to AI, she would have likely continued her success in the WSL at the King Power, also achieving automatic promotion in the 2023/24 season with Leicester, although it claims she could have offered better tactical variations on a game-by-game basis, and created an extremely strong and winning environment.

While Leicester then struggled to reaclimatise to life back in the Premier League, being relegated 13 points behind 17th-placed Tottenham Hotspur, the computer claims that City would have likely finished between 14th and 17th in the division, which would have been considered relative success immediately after promotion.

Therefore, it has also been claimed that while the 49-year-old couldn't have altered some of the club's financial issues all by herself, as is expected, survival back in the Premier League at the first time of asking could have delayed what many felt was 'inevitable' in the real world in terms of punishments and a subsequently further decline.

AI claims that if Leicester had become the first-ever club to appoint a female manager in charge of their men's team, they could have potentially gained greater revenue streams through sponsorships and media attention.

In reality, though, they must now hope that, after a series of decisions which have led to a return to League One after 17 years away, Martin is able to replicate the immediate success of Nigel Pearson in 2008/09, in which the club stormed to the title.