 The Leicester Tigers logo on 31 July 2006. | |||
| Full name | Leicester Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Tigers | ||
| Founded | 3 August 1880; 145 years ago (1880-08-03) | ||
| Location | Leicester, England | ||
| Ground | Mattioli Woods Welford Road (Capacity: 25,849) | ||
| Chairman | Peter Tom | ||
| CEO | Andrea Pinchen | ||
| Coach | Geoff Parling | ||
| Most appearances | David Matthews (502) | ||
| Top scorer | Dusty Hare (4,507) | ||
| Most tries | Percy Lawrie (206) | ||
| League | Premiership Rugby | ||
| 2024–25 | 2nd (Play-off finalists) | ||
| |||
| First match | |||
| 28 October 1880 0–0 vMoseley | |||
| Largest win | |||
| 100–0 vLiverpool St Helens, 11 April 1992 | |||
| Largest defeat | |||
| 10–85 vBarbarians, 4 June 2000 | |||
| Official website | |||
| www | |||
Leicester Tigers (officiallyLeicester Football Club) are a professionalrugby union club based inLeicester, England. They play in theGallagher PREM, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its home matches atMattioli Woods Welford Road in the south of the city. The club has been known by the nicknameTigers since at least 1885. In the2024–25 Premiership Rugby season Tigers finished 2nd, losing the Premiership final, this entitled them to compete in the2025–26 European Rugby Champions Cup. The current head coach isGeoff Parling who will join for the2025–26 Premiership Rugby season.
Leicester have won 21 major titles. They were European Champions twice, back-to-back in2001 and2002; have won a record 11English Championships, fiveRFU Knockout Cups and threeAnglo-Welsh Cups, most recently in2017. Leicester most recently won thePremiership Rugby title in the2022 season, and appeared in a record nine successive Premiership finals, from 2005 to 2013. Leicester is one of only three teams never to have been relegated from the top division. Leicester have appeared in five European finals, the third most overall, as well as the two victories they have also lost finals three times, in1997,2007 and2009. In2021 they played in theEuropean Rugby Challenge Cup final.
Six Leicester Tigers players were members of the2003 Rugby World Cup final-winningEngland side, including captainMartin Johnson.
Leicester Football Club was formed on 3 August 1880 by the merger of three smaller teams: Leicester Athletic Society, Leicester Amateurs and Leicester Alert.[1][2] The club's first game was a scoreless draw on 23 October againstMoseley at theBelgrave Road Cycle and Cricket Ground.[3][4] On 10 September 1892 Leicester played their first game atWelford Road against a Leicestershire XV.[5]
Tom Crumbie was appointed secretary on 2 August 1895, a position he held for the next 33 years.[6] Crumbie has been credited with dragging the club to national prominence. He disbanded reserve and third teams making the First XV an invitation side and introducing players from all over the country.[7][8] Tigers first silverware was theMidlands Counties Cup won for the first time in 1898 againstMoseley.[9] Having won the Midlands Counties Cup every year from 1898 to 1905, they dropped out "to give other teams a chance".[10] On their return to the competition in 1909 Tigers won the cup again.[11]
In 1903Jack Miles became the first home-producedEngland international.[12] Leicester's status as a premier club was confirmed in 1905 when a crowd of 20,000 was on hand to see the club faceThe Original All Blacks, losing 28–0.[13] December 1909 saw Tigers play theBarbarians for the first time, holding them to a 9–9 draw. The fixture became a vital feature in the club's calendar delivering large attendances until open professionalism and league rugby in the 1990s forced it to gradually be abandoned due to fixture congestion. Tigers won the Midlands Counties Cup three more times in four years to cement their place as the midland's premier side before the outbreak ofwar in 1914. The visit of theInvincible All Blacks on 4 October 1924 saw a record attendance at Welford Road of 35,000 that stands to this day.[14] Tigers were beaten 27–0 by the tourists.
Club captainDoug Prentice captained the1930 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia.[15] The firstBBC radio broadcast of a Tigers game was againstWaterloo on 29 November 1930; Tigers won 21–5.[15]Bernard Gadney became the club's first home-produced England captain in 1934 and was captain when four Leicester players were part of the firstEngland side to beat theAll Blacks. Gadney also became the club's second player to captain theBritish Lions on theirtour to Argentina. 1936–37 was the worst season since 1889–90 for the club with only 14 wins from 39 matches.[16]
Tigers first televised game by theBBC was on 3 February 1951 when they beatLondon Scottish 14–0 at theRichmond Athletic Ground.[17]The club underwent a significant restructure in the 1956–57 season. The practice of being an "invitation" club featuring only a First XV stopped and Tigers adopted a more traditional membership club based approach with multiple sides. The "A XV" was to be re-introduced under the name "Extra First XV" with a third "Colts XV" also formed.[18] The 1963–64 season sawDavid Matthews set the record for most consecutive appearances for the club with 109.[19]Matthews was to become captain in 1965 and in 1966/67 lead the club to a record 33 wins.[20]Chalkie White became coach in 1968; the same seasonTom Berry became Leicester's first President of theRFU. White was credited with revolutionising Leicester's players in response to rule changes that opened up the game. 1970/71 sawPeter Wheeler emerge as first-choice hooker having made his debut the year before, he ended the season onEngland's tour to the Far East. Attendance for the annualBarbarians game hit a nadir with a crowd of only 2,518.[21]
The 1971/72 season saw changes that would radically change both the club and the game. TheRFU introduced a nationalKnockout Cup competition for clubs and on 16 November 1971 Tigers played their first competitive cup match since 1914, a 10–3 defeat toNottingham at their Beeston ground. Also introduced that season was Tigers' first "Youth" XV, based on a collection of the best 14- and 15-year-olds in the county. Only six years laterPaul Dodge became the first graduate to win an international cap.[22]
Tigers were not involved in the 1974–75 Cup and lost in the 1st round of the1975–76 Cup. This forced the club into the Midlands qualifiers for the only time. This era saw a huge increase in the popularity of theBarbarians annual fixture with crowds of 15,000 in 1973 & 1975, 17,000 in 1974 and 21,000 in 1976. This contrasted with usual crowds in the low hundreds.[23] 1976–77 saw the introduction of regional "Merit Tables" by the RFU, the first step on the road to full leagues. Based around traditional fixtures Tigers finished second to Moseley in the Midlands Merit Table with a record of played 8 won 6.[23] It took 6 years before Leicester were drawn at home in the cup but in1977–78 they received four in a row on their way to a firstTwickenham final againstGloucester. The game ended in a 6–3 loss to the Cherry and Whites; the attendance was 25,282 – more than double the previous season. Cup success also coincided with Tigers' membership more than doubling from 750 in 1978 to 2,000 by the end of 1979.[24]
Leicester secured their first national trophy, the1978–79 John Player Cup, by defeating Moseley 15–12. Tigers retained the cup in1979–80 beatingLondon Irish 21–9 at Twickenham in front of a record crowd of 27,000.[25] 1979–80 also saw Tigers win the Midlands Merit Table for the first time. To celebrate the club's centenary a six-match tour toAustralia andFiji was arranged in August 1980, the first undertaken by an English club in the southern hemisphere.[citation needed] Prestige fixtures staged at Welford Road to mark the centenary were the visit of theIrish Wolfhounds,Romania, andQueensland. Tigers retained the Midlands Merit Table title in November with an undefeated record. On 25 April 1981, Tigers'Dusty Hare broke the world record for points scored in first-class fixtures with 3,658 points.[26] Leicester retained the cup in1980–81 by beatingGosforth 22–15.
Leicester was knocked out in the semi-finals of the1982 Cup. This was alsoChalkie White's last season with the club after 30 years as a player, administrator or coach. A new generation of players debuted in the early '80s:Dean Richards,John Wells, andRory Underwood. In 1985 in the penultimate step towards league rugby, the Merit Table A was launched for two seasons where Tigers finished fourth and second. League rugby was launched in England with the1987–88 Courage League and all sides now played all other sides in a round-robin. Tigers lost only one match all season and the end of the1987–88 season Tigers became England's first official champions.[27]
Tigers finished the1988–89 Courage League in sixth place, their joint-worst ever finish.[28] During the late 1980s and early 1990s several key members of the Leicester pack came through the youth ranks and became key first-team contributors, most notably lockMartin Johnson who debuted in 1989 and later became club captain; flankerNeil Back who joined in 1990; and the front row trio ofGraham Rowntree,Richard Cockerill, andDarren Garforth who started 166 games together between 1992 and 2002.[29]
From 1993 to 2002 Leicester enjoyed a remarkable nine trophies in ten years. This streak started when Leicester won the1993 Pilkington Cup.[30] In 1993/94 Tigers finished runners up in theCourage League to Bath. Leicester finished asCourage League champion in 1994–95.[31]
The advent of the 1995–96 season brought two important changes: rugby union (and consequently the Tigers) became professional, and European club competition began in the form of theHeineken cup. The 1995/96 season was another of just missing out to perennial rivals Bath who secured a league and cup double after defeating Leicester in thePilkington Cup final. In Leicester's debut season in theHeineken Cup the team reachedthe final, losing 28–9 againstBrive. Leicester won the1997 Pilkington Cup Final 9–3 againstSale. That summerMartin Johnson was named as captain for the1997 British Lions tour to South Africa. In February 1998Dean Richards was appointed as Director of Rugby followingBob Dwyer's sacking.[32][33]
Under Richards, Leicester entered a golden age, winning four consecutivePremiership Rugby titles in1999,2000,2001 and2002, as well as back to backHeineken Cups in 2001 and 2002.During the1998–99 Premiership, the Tigers title was sealed in the penultimate match of the season.[34] In the1999–2000 Premiership season Leicester retained their title. Tigers' third successivePremiership title was sealed early on 17 March 2001.[35] Inthe 2001 Heineken Cup final Tigers beatStade Français 34–30 to secure the club's first continental title.[36] Tigers had won the inaugural Premiership playoffs the week before so also sealed an unprecedented treble.[37] That summerMartin Johnson was named captain for the2001 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia, becoming the first man to lead two tours.
Leicester became the first side to retain a European title after beatingMunster 15–9 in the2002 Heineken Cup Final.[38] Leicester also retained their fourth successive Premiership title in 2002. This brought the club's total to six championships, tying Bath's record. During this time Leicester went 57 games unbeaten at home from 30 December 1997 to 30 November 2002 and earned 52 successive wins.[39] During these four seasons, Leicester lost only 14 games out of the 92 they played.
During the 2003–04 season, Leicester's form suffered and with eight games left in the seasonDean Richards was sacked.[40] After Richards' departure Tigers turned to his assistant coachJohn Wells,[41] who guided Leicester to the regular season top of the league in his only full season. InMartin Johnson andNeil Back's last game for Leicester they lost the Premiership Final toLondon Wasps.
Pat Howard succeeded Wells as the Head Coach.[42] Howard coached the club for two seasons losing a Premiership final toSale in his first season. Over the summer of 2006, the core of a new pack was recruited, and in Howard's second season Leicester won their first piece of silverware for five years, winning theAnglo-Welsh Cup, and sealed the club's first domestic league and cup double after winning thePremiership final 44–16 againstGloucester. However, Leicester lost theHeineken Cup final toWasps. Howard left the club at the end of the season.[43]
Howard was succeeded for one season by the coach ofArgentinaMarcelo Loffreda, who started after the2007 Rugby World Cup.[44] Loffreda had a torrid time in charge despite getting to two finals. After losing theAnglo Welsh Cup final to theOspreys, Leicester became the first side to win an away game in the Premiership playoffs by beatingGloucester in the semi-finals, but lost to Wasps in the final. After this final Loffreda was sacked.[45]
Heyneke Meyer was the board's choice to replace Loffreda, but family circumstances led to his resignation.[46] Richard Cockerill took over, the appointment was confirmed as permanent on 17 April 2009.[47] Cockerill lead Leicester to two Premiership titles in as many years. In the2009 Premiership final Leicester beat London Irish 10–9,[48] and Tigers retained their title the following year as they defeatedSaracens 33–27.[49] After an historic placing kicking competition decided the2009 Heineken Cup semi-final, Leicester lost the2009 Heineken Cup final to Irish provinceLeinster.On Friday 6 November 2009 Leicester hosted the world championSpringboks of South Africa and the young Leicester side triumphed 22–17.[50]
Domestic success continued with Tigers reaching Premiership finals but losing in 2011 and 2012, against Saracens and Harlequins respectively, and winning the2012 LV Cup.[51][52] In 2013 Tigers won their record extending 10th English title defeating local rivalsNorthampton Saints 37–17.[53]
The next year Northampton beat Tigers 21–20 in the Premiership semi final at Franklin's Gardens.[54] The next two years Tigers suffered heavy away defeats in the semi-finals to Bath (47–10)[55] and Saracens (44–17).[56]
On Monday 2 January 2017, Leicester sacked Richard Cockerill as Director of Rugby.[57]Aaron Mauger was placed in temporary charge of the team,[58] winning the2017 Anglo-Welsh Cup, untilMatt O'Connor was announced as the new head coach.[59] Under O'Connor Tigers secured their 13th consecutive playoff appearance where they lost narrowly to Wasps 21–20.[60][61] In the 2017–18 season successive home defeats toNorthampton andNewcastle in Leicester's final two home games saw Tigers miss the playoffs for the first time since 2005.[62] After a 40–6 defeat in the opening game of the2018–19 Premiership Rugby season[63] O'Connor was sacked by the club with immediate effect.[64]Geordan Murphy was placed in charge of the side on an interim basis.[64] Murphy was then made the permanent head coach on 18 December 2018 despite the team being on an eight match losing run.[65] Results did not improve and a final day defeat against Bath saw Leicester finish 11th in thePremiership, their worst ever finish.[66]
After a delayed start to the season due to the2019 Rugby World Cup Tigers fortunes did not improve, and on 21 January 2020 it was announced after months of speculation that England's forwards coachSteve Borthwick would join the club as head coach once his duties with England were finished.[67] His start was later confirmed as July 2020.[68]
On 16 March 2020 the2019–20 Premiership Rugby season was suspended for 5 weeks due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom,[69] with group training suspended indefinitely on 23 March.[70] After the cancellation of games the club implemented 25% wage cuts on all staff, including players,[71] on 22 April 2020 it was reported that Tigers players were unhappy with this and had engaged a solicitor to represent them, though this was quickly denied,[72] on 11 May 2020 CEO Simon Cohen left the club after an 8-year tenure and was replaced by Andrea Pinchen.[73] On 4 June 2020 it was revealed that Tigers were set to lose up to £5m of revenue during the coronavirus enforced shutdown,[74] eventually making 31 employees redundant.[75] On 29 June it was reported that the pay dispute which started in April could result in several players leaving the club after refusing to cut their pay,[76] with 5 players includingManu Tuilagi andTelusa Veainu leaving later that week after refusing to amend their contracts in light of the global pandemic.[75]
The completion of the delayed2019–20 Premiership Rugby season between August and October saw another 11th-place finish for Leicester, saved from relegation only by a points deduction fromSaracens for breaching the salary cap. On 13 November 2020, just 8 days before the start of the2020–21 Premiership Rugby seasonGeordan Murphy left as director of rugby in a decision described as "mutual".[77]
With new head coach Steve Borthwick now in charge of team selection Leicester got off to a winning start againstGloucester.[78] In his first season at the club Borthwick guided Leicester to the2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup final and 6th place inthe league, securingChampions Cup rugby for the first time in two years.[79][80]
Tigers started the following season strongly, five wins in the opening five rounds was the club's best start in the Premiership era,[81] the club remained unbeaten for 15 games in all competitions, the second best start to a season ever,[82] but failed to tie the record after losing to Wasps on 9 January 2022.[83] A week later Leicester overcame an 18-point deficit in the second half to beatConnacht, aHosea Saumaki try sealing the win on the final play of the game, and secure progress to their firstChampions Cup knock out stages since 2016.[84]
In Europe, Leicester progressed pastClermont Auvergne over two legs, despite getting red cards in both matches,[85][86] but lost at home toLeinster 23–14, after falling behind 20–0 in the first half to the Irish side.[87]
Domestically they secured a first home play-off semi final since 2013, with two games to spare, after a 56–26 win againstBristol Bears.[88] Tigers' wingerChris Ashton broke thePremiership Rugby all-time try scoring record in this match, his hat-trick taking him to 95 career league tries.[88] In the semi-final they faced local rivalsNorthampton Saints, but much of the build up was focused on recently retired former captainTom Youngs whose wife, Tiffany, died from cancer in week preceding the match. His brotherBen Youngs started the match, and it was his half back partnerGeorge Ford who inspired the victory scoring a "full house" with a try, conversion, penalty & drop goal for 22 points in a 27–13 win.[89]
In the final Leicester facedSaracens, a re-match of the 2010 & 2011 finals. Ford wasn't to last long in the final withdrawing injured in the 23rd minute & being replaced byFreddie Burns. With the matching tied 12–12 it was Burns who scored the 80th-minute drop goal to win Leicester their 11th English title, only two seasons after finishing in 11th place.[90]
Speculation began that Borthwick was in line to succeedEddie Jones as England head coach after the2023 Rugby World Cup, but after a poor2022 Autumn internationals Jones was replaced by Borthwick on 19 December 2022. He was initially replaced as Leicester head coach in an interim capacity byRichard Wigglesworth, the club's starting scrum half in the 2022 Premiership final & previous attack coach. On 22 February 2023, it was announced thatDan McKellar would take the role on a full time basis from 1 July 2023, previously having beenAustralia's forwards coach.[91]
After a single season, the third worst in the club's league history, McKellar was dismissed on 22 June 2024.[92] On 27 June 2024, Tigers appointed fellow AustralianMichael Cheika as the new head coach on an initial one-year deal.[93] In February 2025, it was announced that Cheika himself would be stepping down following the conclusion of his contract at the end of the2024–25 season. Former Leicester prop and ex-Munster head coach Graham Rowntree was the rumoured frontrunner to replace him for the following season.[94] Leicester were reported to have agreed terms withPaul Gustard and to have made an offer toLeon MacDonald,[95] before on 12 May 2025, it was confirmed that former England and Lions second-rowGeoff Parling would succeed Cheika as the new Head Coach of Leicester Tigers on a long-term deal from the 2025–26 season.[96]
Leicester finished the regular season in 2nd, beating Newcastle on the final day to secure a home play off semi-final.[97] They beat Sale 21-16, taking a half-time lead through two tries fromAdam Radwan, before Sale drew level through former-Tiger George Ford,Izaia Perese scored the winning try with his first touch breaking from 40 meters out.[98][99] Tigers lost the final 23–21 againstBath,[100] with coach Cheika highlighting what he felt was poor refereeing in several areas of the match.[101]
Leicester Tigers formed a women's team on 15 July 2021,[102] launched in partnership withLichfield Ladies.[103]
| Season | League | Domestic cup | European cup | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Competition | Position | Points | Play-offs | Competition | Performance | Competition | Performance | |
| 1971–72 | John Player Cup | 1st round | ||||||
| 1972–73 | John Player Cup | Quarter-final | ||||||
| 1973–74 | John Player Cup | 1st round | ||||||
| 1974–75 | John Player Cup | Did not qualify | ||||||
| 1975–76 | John Player Cup | 1st round | ||||||
| 1976–77 | Midlands Merit | 2nd | 75% | John Player Cup | 2nd round | |||
| 1977–78 | Midlands Merit | 5th | 62.5% | John Player Cup | Finalist | |||
| 1978–79 | Midlands Merit | 2nd | 85.7% | John Player Cup | Champions | |||
| 1979–80 | Midlands Merit | 1st | 85.7% | John Player Cup | Champions | |||
| 1980–81 | Midlands Merit | 1st | 92.9% | John Player Cup | Champions | |||
| 1981–82 | Midlands Merit | 1st | 85.7% | John Player Cup | Semi-final | |||
| 1982–83 | Midlands Merit | 1st | 100% | John Player Cup | Finalist | |||
| 1983–84 | Midlands Merit | 1st | 100% | John Player Cup | 3rd round | |||
| 1984–85 | National Merit A Midlands Merit | 6th 3rd | 42.9% 85.7% | John Player Cup | Quarter-final | |||
| 1985–86 | National Merit A | 4th | 70% | John Player Cup | Semi-final | |||
| 1986–87 | National Merit A | 2nd | 75% | John Player Cup | Semi-final | |||
| 1987–88 | Courage League Division 1 | 1st | 37 | John Player Cup | 4th round | |||
| 1988–89 | Courage League Division 1 | 6th | 13 | Pilkington Cup | Finalist | |||
| 1989–90 | Courage League Division 1 | 5th | 12 | Pilkington Cup | Quarter-final | |||
| 1990–91 | Courage League Division 1 | 4th | 16 | Pilkington Cup | 4th round | |||
| 1991–92 | Courage League Division 1 | 6th | 13 | Pilkington Cup | Semi-final | |||
| 1992–93 | Courage League Division 1 | 3rd | 18 | Pilkington Cup | Champions | |||
| 1993–94 | Courage League Division 1 | 2nd | 28 | Pilkington Cup | Finalist | |||
| 1994–95 | Courage League Division 1 | 1st | 31 | Pilkington Cup | Semi-final | |||
| 1995–96 | Courage League Division 1 | 2nd | 30 | Pilkington Cup | Finalist | |||
| 1996–97 | Courage League Division 1 | 4th | 29 | Pilkington Cup | Champions | Heineken Cup | Finalist | |
| 1997–98 | Premiership | 4th | 26 | Tetley's Bitter Cup | 5th round | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final | |
| 1998–99 | Premiership | 1st | 44 | Tetley's Bitter Cup | Quarter-final | Did not enter | N/A | |
| 1999–2000 | Premiership | 1st | 51 | Tetley's Bitter Cup | 5th round | Heineken Cup | Group stage | |
| 2000–01 | Premiership | 1st | 81 | Champions* | Tetley's Bitter Cup | Semi-final | Heineken Cup | Champions |
| 2001–02 | Premiership | 1st | 83 | Quarter-final* | Powergen Cup | Quarter-final | Heineken Cup | Champions |
| 2002–03 | Premiership | 6th | 55 | Wildcard winner | Powergen Cup | Semi-final | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2003–04 | Premiership | 5th | 55 | Wildcard winner | Powergen Cup | 6th round | Heineken Cup | Group stage |
| 2004–05 | Premiership | 1st | 78 | Finalist | Powergen Cup | 6th round | Heineken Cup | Semi-final |
| 2005–06 | Premiership | 2nd | 68 | Finalist | Powergen Cup | Semi-final | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2006–07 | Premiership | 2nd | 71 | Champions | EDF Energy Cup | Champions | Heineken Cup | Finalist |
| 2007–08 | Premiership | 4th | 64 | Finalist | EDF Energy Cup | Finalist | Heineken Cup | Group stage |
| 2008–09 | Premiership | 1st | 71 | Champions | EDF Energy Cup | Group stage | Heineken Cup | Finalist |
| 2009–10 | Premiership | 1st | 73 | Champions | LV Cup | Group stage | Heineken Cup | Group stage |
| 2010–11 | Premiership | 1st | 78 | Finalist | LV Cup | Group stage | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2011–12 | Premiership | 2nd | 74 | Finalist | LV Cup | Champions | Heineken Cup | Group stage |
| 2012–13 | Premiership | 2nd | 74 | Champions | LV Cup | Group stage | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2013–14 | Premiership | 3rd | 74 | Semi-final | LV Cup | Group stage | Heineken Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2014–15 | Premiership | 3rd | 68 | Semi-final | LV Cup | Semi-final | Champions Cup | Group stage |
| 2015–16 | Premiership | 4th | 65 | Semi-final | None | N/A | Champions Cup | Semi-final |
| 2016–17 | Premiership | 4th | 66 | Semi-final | Anglo-Welsh Cup | Champions | Champions Cup | Group stage |
| 2017–18 | Premiership | 5th | 63 | Did not qualify | Anglo-Welsh Cup | Group stage | Champions Cup | Group stage |
| 2018–19 | Premiership | 11th | 41 | Did not qualify | Premiership Rugby Cup | Group stage | Champions Cup | Group stage |
| 2019–20 | Premiership | 11th | 29 | Did not qualify | Premiership Rugby Cup | Group stage | Challenge Cup | Semi-final |
| 2020–21 | Premiership | 6th | 54 | Did not qualify | No competition | N/A | Challenge Cup | Finalist |
| 2021–22 | Premiership | 1st | 94 | Champions | Premiership Cup | Semi-final | Champions Cup | Quarter-final |
| 2022–23 | Premiership | 3rd | 59 | Semi-final | Premiership Cup | Group stage | Champions Cup | Quarter–final |
| 2023–24 | Premiership | 8th | 45 | Did not qualify | Premiership Cup | Finalist | Champions Cup | Round of 16 |
| 2024–25 | Premiership | 2nd | 61 | Finalist | Premiership Cup | Group stage | Champions Cup | Round of 16 |
* In 2001 & 2002 the winners of the league were considered champions with the winners of the playoffs considered champions from 2003 onward.
Leicester have participated in 16 of the 22 Premiership Play Offs, reaching nine consecutive finals between 2005 and 2013. Leicester finished first in 2004–05 going directly to the final; inMartin Johnson &Neil Back's last game for the club they lost 39–14 toWasps.The following season Tigers finished second beatingLondon Irish 40–8 in their first Play Off semi final before losing the final 45–20 toSale.
In 2007 Leicester won their first title via the playoffs. They defeatedBristol 26–14 in semi-final before beatingGloucester 44–16 atTwickenham.[104] On 18 May 2008 Leicester defeated Gloucester atKingsholm to become the first team to win a Premiership semi-final playoff away from home.[105] Leicester lost the 2008 final 26–16 to Wasps.[106]
In 2008–09 Tigers topped the table and beatBath 24–10 in the semi-final. The final was the closest yet, Tigers winning 10–9 againstLondon Irish.[48] In 2010 the side retained the trophy winning 33–27 againstSaracens,Dan Hipkiss scored the decisive try in the closing stages.[49] Tigers reached the2010–11 final for a rematch with Saracens losing 22–18.
2011–12 saw Tigers finish second in the table and beat Saracens 24–15 in the semi-finals at Welford Road. In the2012 finalHarlequins beat Leicester 30–23. In 2013 Leicester finished 2nd and beat Harlequins 33–16 in the semi-final at Welford Road. Leicester won their tenth Premiership title by beatingNorthampton, 37–17.[107] These nine consecutive finals is a record for consecutive appearances in a Premiership play-off final.
In2014 Leicester finished third and lost, 21–20, to Northampton in the semi-final atFranklin's Gardens. In2015 Leicester finished third and lost to Bath, 47–10, in the semi-finals. In2016 Leicester finished fourth and travelled toAllianz Park where they lost toSaracens, 44–17. In2017 Leicester finished fourth and facedWasps at theRicoh Arena, losing 21–20.
After a four-year spell of missing the play offs Leicester returned to the play offs in 2022 after finishing the regular season top. In the semi-final they beat Northampton Saints 27–14. In the final they faced Saracens,Freddie Burns scored an 80th minute drop goal to win the final 15–12 and seal Leicester's 11th English Championship.[108]
The next season in 2023 Leicester finished third and lost toSale Sharks, 21–13, after travelling to theAJ Bell Stadium in Salford. Tigers faced Sale again in 2025 semi-finals, this time at Welford Road. Tigers won 21-16,Izaia Perese scoring the winning try with his first touch breaking from 40 meters out.[98][99] In the final they played Bath, losing 23–21 after a string of controversial penalty decisions against Leicester.[109]
Leicester hold the record for most Premiership titles (11), the most consecutive Premiership Final appearances (9) and the most Play off appearances (14). They were the first team to achieve an away semi-final victory in the Premiership play-offs (against Gloucester at Kingsholm on 18 May 2008).
The club's formal name is Leicester Football Club but is widely known by the nickname "Tigers". The first known use of the name was after a game againstBedford School in February 1885, theLeicester Daily Post reporting that "the Tiger stripes were keeping well together".[110] The origin of the nickname is uncertain most probably coming from the side's chocolate and yellow playing kit, but it may have come from the club's links to theLeicestershire Regiment,[111] who had received the nickname 'Tigers' after serving inIndia, and from 1825 had worn a cap-badge with a 'royal' tiger to mark the connection.
In their early years the side were also known as "The Death or Glory Boys" on account of their black shirts.[111]
In the 1926–27 season Leicester started using letters to identify their forwards;The Birmingham Post report for the match againstBath on 6 October 1926 noted "Leicester's forwards were picked out easily as their jerseys were decorated with large bold letters A-G". On 12 September 1931 againstOld Blues the practice was expanded to the whole team.[112]
This tradition lasted until 1998 whenPremiership Rugby rules forced Leicester to abandon lettering and Tigers first wore numbers on 5 September 1998 againstHarlequins atWelford Road.[112]
Since then Leicester have only returned to letters for non-competition friendlies against sides such asAustralia[113] or theNew Zealand Maori.[114] On the current kit the letters are displayed in small on the front of the jersey.
Tigers' very first kit was black with white shorts and black socks, with the club's crest in the centre of the chest. From 1884 to 1887, the club played in chocolate and yellow shirts, likely giving rise to the club's nickname, white shorts and black socks before experimenting with claret and French grey horizontal stripes between 1887 and 1891.[115]
The first use of the scarlet, green and white was on 3 October 1891 againstWolverton at Belgrave Cricket & Cycle Ground. However, for the 1891–92 season, the pattern was vertical stripes.[116] It was not until 1895 that the now-traditional scarlet, green and white horizontal stripes were introduced to the jersey, paired with black shorts and socks until 1906.[115] The Tigers then played three season between 1906 and 1909 in white shirts with navy shorts, the first two seasons with a leaping tiger logo on the left breast[117] before reverting to a scarlet, green and white striped jersey, while retaining the navy shorts. This new kit layout lasted until 1947 when the navy shorts were swapped for white.
The Tigers kit and colours did not materially change between 1947 and 1999, only slight variations in the sizes of the stripes, the addition of a manufacturer's logo in 1975, a sponsor in 1988 and in 1991 the addition of the club crest for the first time since 1908.
In 1999, the Tigers switched to a darker green and have played in a variety of kit designs since.
      1880–1884 |     1884–1887 |    1887–1891 |    1891–1895 |
   1895–1906 | 1906–1909 | 1906–1947 |  1947–1999 |
| Seasons | Manufacturer | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 1991–1992 | Cotton Oxford | None |
| 1992–1993 | Ansells | |
| 1993–1995 | Tetley Bitter | |
| 1995–1996 | GoldStar | |
| 1996–1997 | Cotton Traders | |
| 1997–1999 | Next | |
| 1999–2002 | Vauxhall | |
| 2002–2008 | Bradstone | |
| 2008–2012 | Caterpillar | |
| 2012–2015 | Canterbury | |
| 2015–2016 | KooGa | |
| 2016–2017 | Holland and Barrett | |
| 2017–2020 | Kukri Sports | |
| 2020–present | Samurai | Topps Tiles |
Tigers' main rivals areNorthampton Saints, theEast Midlands Derby has taken place between the two clubs for over 130 years, andBath, a rivalry that developed in the 1980s and 1990s when both sides were fighting at the top of the English game.[118]
Tigers also developed a rivalry withWasps in the mid-2000s when they faced each other in 3 major finals over the course of 4 seasons, with Wasps winning all three. Historically Tigers had a strong local rivalry withCoventry from the 1880s until the 1990s, after which the sides did not face each other until 2025.[119][120]
Twice annually, Tigers faceGloucester for theSlater Cup, named in honour ofEd Slater a former player for both sides who was diagnosed in 2022 withmotor neurone disease. Prior to the cup being awarded Leicester and Gloucester had faced each other over 200 times since the 1890s.
The club plays its home games atMattioli Wood Welford Road. The ground was opened in 1892 and the first stands accommodated 3,000 spectators.[121] The clubhouse was built on the Aylestone Road end in 1909,[11] the Members' & Crumbie Stands were built just before and just after the First World War respectively. A stand was built at the Welford Road end in 1995, initially called the Alliance & Leicester Stand it is currently known as theMattioli Woods Stand.[122] The total ground capacity is currently 25,849 after redevelopments in 2008 and 2015.
Before redevelopment of Welford Road began in 2008 the club explored other options. On 23 November 2004 the club announced that it had entered into a 50–50 joint venture with the city's mainfootball club,Leicester City, to purchase City's current ground,Leicester City Stadium. If the purchase had gone through, the Tigers would have surrendered their lease on Welford Road and moved into Walkers Stadium.[123] However, after several months of talks, the two clubs ended any ground share plans in July 2005.[124]
On 11 June 2007 the club announced plans that it was working for a redevelopment plan which would raise the capacity from 17,498 to 25,000 by 2011.[125] On 20 February 2008 Leicester Tigers received planning consent for the £60million redevelopment of Welford Road. The first phase of the development was a new 10,000 seat North Stand (Granby Halls side), taking overall capacity from 17,498 to 24,000.[126] In the summer of 2008 work began on the construction of the new North Stand. The work was completed for the first home game of the2009-10 season againstNewcastle Falcons.[127]
At the end of the 2008–09 season three home games were played at theKing Power Stadium, then known as the Walkers Stadium, due to demolition of the old north stand. These saw Tigers play Bath twice, a 20–15 win in theHeineken Cup quarter finals and a victory in the Premiership Play Off semi finals as well as a 73–3 win againstBristol. Tigers have also played two Heineken Cup semi-final games at theKing Power Stadium, againstToulose andLlanelli Scarlets in 2005 and 2007 respectively, but the ground was designated as a neutral venue for both.
On 27 February 2015 Tigers announced plans to continue the redevelopment of Welford Road by replacing the clubhouse and temporary West Stand with a new permanent building with a 3,100 capacity.[128] Work started on 28 May 2015[129] and was completed by January 2016.
In October 2020, Mattioli Woods extended their naming rights deal to include the entire stadium for 5 seasons until 2024–25. The stadium becameMattioli Woods Welford Road.[130]
The Leicester Tigers senior squad for the2025–26 season is:[131][132]
Note: Flags indicate national union underWorld Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
Leicester Tigers' Academy squad is:[133]
Note: Flags indicate national union underWorld Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
|
|
David Matthews holds the record for most appearances for Leicester Tigers with 502 appearances between 1955 and 1974.Percy Lawrie is the only man to score more than 200 tries for the club, scoring a record 206 between 1907 and 1927.Dusty Hare is the club's all-time highest points scorer with 4,507 between 1976 and 1989.
178 players from 16 different nations have been selected to represent their national side whilst a member of Leicester. The first wasJack Miles who was selected forEngland in 1903, Leicester's first non-English international wasScotland'sJock Lawrie in 1924. The club's first non-British or Irish player selected for international duty wasCanada'sDave Lougheed when he played againstUnited States in August 1998.
The following are players who have represented theLions while playing for Leicester:
3 tours:
2 tours:
1 tour
Italics denote a player who appeared on another tour whilst a member of another club.
2025:Ollie Chessum
2013:Ben Youngs†,Tom Youngs,Manu Tuilagi,Geoff Parling
2009:Harry Ellis
2005:Julian White,Ben Kay,Lewis Moody,Geordan Murphy,Ollie Smith
2001:Dorian West
1997:Will Greenwood,Eric Miller
1993:Tony Underwood
1983:Dusty Hare
1980:Paul Dodge
1974:Alan Old
1971:Rodger Arneil
1959:Tony O'Reilly,Phil Horrocks-Taylor
1936:Bernard Gadney,Alexander Obolensky,Charles Beamish
1930:Doug Prentice,George Beamish,Joe Kendrew
1910:Ken Wood
1908:F. S. Jackson,John Jackett,Tom Smith
1903:Alfred Hind
†Ben Youngs was selected to tour for a second time in 2017, but turned down the offer for family reasons.[134]
The following are players which have represented their countries at theRugby World Cup, whilst playing for Leicester:
| Tournament | Players selected | England players | Other national team players |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 2 | Dean Richards,Rory Underwood | |
| 1991 | 2 | Dean Richards,Rory Underwood | |
| 1995 | 6 | Neil Back,Martin Johnson,Dean Richards,Graham Rowntree,Rory Underwood,Tony Underwood | |
| 1999 | 11 | Neil Back,Richard Cockerill,Martin Corry,Darren Garforth,Will Greenwood,Austin Healey,Martin Johnson,Leon Lloyd,Graham Rowntree, | Dave Lougheed ,Fritz van Heerden |
| 2003 | 8 | Neil Back,Martin Corry,Martin Johnson,Ben Kay,Lewis Moody,Julian White,Dorian West, | Dan Lyle |
| 2007 | 11 | George Chuter,Martin Corry,Dan Hipkiss,Ben Kay,Lewis Moody, | Marcos Ayerza ,Seru Rabeni ,Geordan Murphy ,Martin Castrogiovanni ,Alesana Tuilagi ,Jim Hamilton |
| 2011 | 12 | Dan Cole,Tom Croft,Louis Deacon,Toby Flood,Manu Tuilagi,Thomas Waldrom,Ben Youngs, | Marcos Ayerza,Horacio Agulla,Geordan Murphy,Martin Castrogiovanni,Alesana Tuilagi |
| 2015 | 8 | Dan Cole,Ben Youngs,Tom Youngs, | Marcos Ayerza,Vereniki Goneva,Leonardo Ghiraldini,Michele Rizzo,Opeti Fonua |
| 2019 | 8 | Dan Cole,George Ford,Ellis Genge,Jonny May,Manu Tuilagi,Ben Youngs[135] | Sione Kalamafoni,Telusa Veainu[136] |
| 2023 | 10 | Ollie Chessum,Dan Cole,George Martin,Freddie Steward,Ben Youngs[137][138] | Julián Montoya,[139]Jasper Wiese[140]Tommy Reffell ,[141]Solomone Kata,[142]Handré Pollard[143] |
Source:[144]
* Martin Corry was also captain for the majority of a Lions test in 2005 afterBrian O'Driscoll left the field injured, however he is not considered the official captain for that match.
The following have been appointed club captain:
The following people associated with club have been inducted into theWorld Rugby Hall of Fame.
Tigers have named two "best" teams in recent times. On 1 November 2000 to celebrate the comingmillennium a panel of former Tigers players and administrators named aTeam of the century; whilst from October 2008 to February 2009 to celebrate the building of the then namedCaterpillar Stand fans were invited to vote on aWalk of Legends in partnership with theLeicester Mercury.[153][154]
|
|
At the time theTeam of the Century was announced Garforth, Johnson and Back were still current players.
Geoff Parling, Head coachAnthony Allen, First team coachBrett Deacon, Assistant coach
Peter Hewat, Attack coachMatt Parr, Head of physical performanceNeil Fowkes, Scrum coach| Name | Nat. | From | To | P | W | D | L | Win % | Honours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Dwyer | Australia | July 1996 | 14 February 1998 | 70 | 52 | 1 | 17 | 74.26 | 1997 Pilkington Cup |
| Dean Richards | England | 22 February 1998 | 2 February 2004 | 210 | 138 | 6 | 66 | 65.71 | 1998–99 Premiership, 1999–00 Premiership, 2000–01 Premiership, 2000–01 Zurich Championship, 2000–01 Heineken Cup, 2001–02 Premiership, 2001–02 Heineken Cup |
| John Wells | England | 3 February 2004 | 14 May 2005 | 45 | 31 | 5 | 9 | 68.88 | |
| Pat Howard | Australia | July 2005 | 20 May 2007 | 75 | 49 | 4 | 22 | 65.33 | 2006–07 Premiership, 2006–07 Anglo Welsh Cup |
| Richard Cockerill (Caretaker) | England | July 2007 | 3 November 2007 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 62.50 | |
| Marcelo Loffreda | Argentina | 10 November 2007 | 31 May 2008 | 28 | 15 | 0 | 13 | 53.57 | |
| Heyneke Meyer | South Africa | July 2008 | 24 January 2009 | 21 | 13 | 1 | 7 | 61.90 | |
| Richard Cockerill | England | 15 February 2009 | 2 January 2017 | 276 | 178 | 11 | 87 | 64.49 | 2008–09 Premiership, 2009–10 Premiership, 2011-12 Anglo-Welsh Cup, 2012–13 Premiership |
| Aaron Mauger (Caretaker) |  New Zealand | 2 January 2017 | 25 March 2017 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 58.33 | 2016-17 Anglo-Welsh Cup |
| Matt O'Connor | Australia | 26 March 2017 | 3 September 2018 | 38 | 19 | 0 | 19 | 50.00 | |
| Geordan Murphy | Ireland | 3 September 2018 | 13 November 2020 | 64 | 21 | 1 | 42 | 32.81 | |
| Steve Borthwick | England | 13 November 2020 | 19 December 2022 | 78 | 53 | 1 | 24 | 67.94 | 2021–22 Premiership |
| Richard Wigglesworth (Caretaker) | England | 19 December 2022 | 14 May 2023 | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 56.25 | |
| Dan McKellar | Australia | 1 July 2023 | 22 June 2024 | 30 | 16 | 0 | 14 | 53.33 | |
| Michael Cheika | Australia | 27 June 2024 | 15 June 2025 | 31 | 18 | 1 | 12 | 58.06 | |
| Geoff Parling | England | 16 June 2025 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 77.77 |
