Lowly? For the champions of England, hardly appropriate. The Leicester City tale hardly hinted at the happy ending we are experiencing today. In fact, fairytale is more appropriate. Leicester City was promoted to the English Premier League in time for the 2014/2015 season. The Premier League is the biggest stage teams can play on in England. Promotion requires a grueling season of 46 games whilst traveling all across the country. Teams fight for the right to compete with the elite in the nation. Having earned that right, Leicester City found themselves rock-bottom of the Premier League and looked certain to be demoted and sent back to the second division. Hence, classified as one of the 'lowly teams'. But, by some miracle (and certainly not the first), they rallied and gathered enough points to stay afloat. One summer of transfers and one certainly hectic season later, Leicester City Football Club are proud champions of England.
It was somewhat unfortunate that we were unable to see those wild celebrations on the pitch after a dramatic victory. Instead, we were relegated to tweets and snippets of pubs and various gatherings. It matters not, the King Power Stadium will be rocking the entire nation as Leicester City officially come onto the pitch as champions for the first time.
The most impressive facet of this unworldly triumph is the fact that Leicester is above and beyond the rest of the league on the more intangible scope. Their individual stars have been well and truly documented but let us not forget the impact of manager Claudio Ranieri. Mahrez has always been a bright spark for the club, even during relegation battled seasons. Jamie Vardy broke records this season but had been playing for Leicester since 2012. All of a sudden, both players started to score and combine effectively. We have been treated to some spectacular goals along the way, but these are the products of immense confidence. Belief and drive are the fundamental qualities of any professional. Believing and driving an entire squad of professionals is another matter entirely, and this is a testament to the plaudits directed at Ranieri. He has led this team to one of the greatest feats in the history of the entirety of sport. It begs the question then, what does this mean for football?
Unity for one. I have never been so understanding of people jumping on a bandwagon like Leicester’s. The character of the club must be replicated by other newly promoted clubs. We have seen lowly clubs attempt to play fluid, attacking football and get duly smashed to pieces by the upper echelon. Leicester is a reminder that football is truly unpredictable and there is never a reason to lose hope in the club you swear loyalty to. With 5000-1 odds on winning the league, the rest of the league is no doubt wondering, “Well if they can do it, why can’t we?”.
This is also a reminder of a global viewing scale, regarding the debate on which league is the “best” in the world. While Spain’s La Liga BBVA has often been part of the conversation and usually touted for the throne of the football kingdom, its competitiveness lacks in comparison. Normally, in sport, a league normally has a mix of teams of every caliber. You have the few title challengers, the mediocre bunch and the worst of the lot. Now, the divide seems to have been thrown up in the air. Previous champions should return next season with a vengeance. It is safe to say that the interest in football has been done a world of good thanks to this season and now the stage is set for the next chapter. Will we see another underdog rise from the trenches of defeat? Will the old guard return and use their financial resources to bully the lesser teams? Maybe Leicester still has fate on their side.
