The Jamie Vardy transfer twist that must haunt Vincent Tan and Cardiff City | OneFootball

The Bluebirds had matched Leicester City's £1m bid for the striker back in 2012

Jamie Vardy's name is back in the headlines this summer as the veteran striker weighs up where to play his football next.

The 39-year-old has confirmed he will be leaving Cremonese following their relegation from Serie A, having managed seven goals and two assists in 29 league appearances during a single season in Lombardy.

He arrived at the Italian club on a free transfer in September 2025 after his 13-year association with Leicester City finally came to a close.

Yet, all those years ago, he was actually close to signing for Cardiff City instead of the Foxes.

Jamie Vardy said no to £1m Cardiff City move

Cardiff City were in the mix when Jamie Vardy started drawing Football League interest in the summer of 2012, whilst playing in the Conference Premier for Fleetwood Town.

The Bluebirds, then a Championship club fresh from a play-off semi-final defeat to West Ham under manager Malky Mackay, submitted a reported £1m bid for Vardy’s services.

It was accepted, but Vardy ultimately turned the Welsh club down to sign for Leicester - who had an earlier bid rejected the previous January.

Upon signing for the East Midlands outfit, Vardy told BBC Radio Leicester, "I got to sit down for a chat with Nigel [Pearson] and this is where I wanted to come.

"And obviously because the manager wanted me as well it made the decision easier. He said he'd been watching me for quite a while, obviously if I've caught his eye I must have been doing something right."

Given Pearson had played for Vardy's boyhood club Sheffield Wednesday, who are reportedly interested in signing him now, it was probably an easy decision for the striker to make.

However, it would be harsh to solely blame Mackay for Cardiff failing to sign Vardy. As one Cardiff supporter recounted on a fan forum, the bid for Vardy coincided at the time of Vincent Tan’s controversial rebrand - in which the club’s primary colour was changed to red.

Vincent Tan must still be haunted by Jamie Vardy's Leicester City decision

Vardy went on to score 200 goals in 500 games for Leicester, and obviously played a huge part in the Foxes winning the Premier League and FA Cup.

In doing all of that, he also broke the consecutive scoring record in the top-flight and played for England 26 times.

Ahead of his Netflix documentary coming out in May 2026 - when asked if another player from Non-League could ever repeat what he did - Vardy told BBC Sport, "I think, luckily, I was just a bit of a freak.

"I don't think it will probably happen again, no, but it happened for me and it was hard work. It really was tough, but all worth it."

Yes, Cardiff did win the Championship under Mackay the following season, but they only spent one season in the Premier League before their downward spiral began.

It’s all ifs, buts and maybes - yet Vincent Tan must still be haunted by Vardy’s decision to turn down the Bluebirds.

On the financial side of things, it was reported that the Foxes earned a record income of £129m during that title-winning 15/16 season. Could you imagine the things Cardiff may have achieved with Vardy playing for them instead?

As previously mentioned, now Sheffield Wednesday are among the parties understood to have discussed the possibility of signing him, though it remains to be seen exactly where he wants to go.