Leicester Tigers facts for kids
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, which is England's top rugby league.
The club started in 1880. Since 1892, they have played their home games at Mattioli Woods Welford Road in the south of the city. People have called the club "Tigers" since at least 1885. In the 2024–25 Premiership Rugby season, the Tigers finished 2nd and reached the Premiership final. This meant they could play in the 2025–26 European Rugby Champions Cup. The current head coach is Geoff Parling, who joined for the 2025–26 Premiership Rugby season.
Leicester Tigers have won 21 big titles. They were European Champions twice in a row, in 2001 and 2002. They have also won a record 11 English Championships, five RFU Knockout Cups, and three Anglo-Welsh Cups. Their most recent Anglo-Welsh Cup win was in 2017. Leicester last won the Premiership Rugby title in the 2022 season. They also played in a record nine Premiership finals in a row, from 2005 to 2013. Leicester is one of only three teams that have never been moved down from the top division. They have played in five European finals, winning two and losing three (in 1997, 2007, and 2009). In 2021, they played in the European Rugby Challenge Cup final.
Six Leicester Tigers players were part of the England team that won the 2003 Rugby World Cup final, including their captain Martin Johnson.
The Leicester Tigers logo on 31 July 2006.
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| Full name | Leicester Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Tigers | ||
| Founded | 3 August 1880 | ||
| Location | Leicester, England | ||
| Ground(s) | Mattioli Woods Welford Road (Capacity: 25,849) | ||
| Chairman | Peter Tom | ||
| CEO | Andrea Pinchen | ||
| Coach(es) | Geoff Parling | ||
| Most appearances | David Matthews (502) | ||
| Top scorer | Dusty Hare (4,507) | ||
| Most tries | Percy Lawrie (206) | ||
| League(s) | Premiership Rugby | ||
| 2024–25 | 2nd (Play-off finalists) | ||
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| First match | |||
| 28 October 1880 0–0 v Moseley |
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| Largest win | |||
| 100–0 v Liverpool St Helens, 11 April 1992 | |||
| Largest defeat | |||
| 10–85 v Barbarians, 4 June 2000 | |||
| Official website | |||
Contents
Club History
How the Club Started (1880–1928)
Leicester Football Club began on August 3, 1880. It was formed by combining three smaller teams. Their first game was a 0–0 draw against Moseley on October 23. On September 10, 1892, Leicester played their first game at Welford Road.
Tom Crumbie became the club's secretary in 1895. He helped the club become famous across the country. The Tigers won their first trophy, the Midlands Counties Cup, in 1898. They won this cup every year from 1898 to 1905.
In 1903, Jack Miles was the first player from Leicester to play for the England international team. In 1905, 20,000 people watched the club play against The Original All Blacks. The Tigers lost 28–0. In December 1909, the Tigers played the Barbarians for the first time, ending in a 9–9 draw.
Changes and Challenges (1928–1971)
Club captain Doug Prentice led the 1930 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia. The first time a Tigers game was broadcast on BBC radio was on November 29, 1930. Leicester won 21–5 against Waterloo. Bernard Gadney became the club's first England captain in 1934. He also became the second Leicester player to captain the British Lions on their tour to Argentina in 1936. The 1936–37 season was one of the club's toughest.
The club made big changes in the 1956–57 season. They became a more traditional club with different teams, not just one main team. David Matthews set a record in 1963–64 for playing 109 games in a row for the club. He became captain in 1965 and led the team to a record 33 wins in 1966–67. Chalkie White became coach in 1968.
New Competitions Begin (1971–1988)
The 1971–72 season brought big changes. The RFU started a national Knockout Cup competition. On November 16, 1971, the Tigers played their first cup match since 1914. They lost 10–3 to Nottingham. A "Youth" team was also started for 14- and 15-year-olds. Just six years later, Paul Dodge was the first player from this youth team to play internationally.
The annual game against the Barbarians became very popular, with crowds of up to 21,000 people. In 1976–77, regional "Merit Tables" were introduced, which was the first step towards full leagues. In 1977–78, Leicester reached their first final at Twickenham for the John Player Cup, but lost 6–3 to Gloucester.
Leicester won their first national trophy, the 1978–79 John Player Cup, in 1979. They beat Moseley 15–12. The Tigers won the cup again in 1980 and 1981. To celebrate the club's 100th birthday in 1980, they went on a six-match tour to Australia and Fiji. In 1981, Dusty Hare broke the world record for points scored in first-class rugby.
A new group of players joined in the early 1980s, including Dean Richards, John Wells, and Rory Underwood. In 1987–88, league rugby officially started in England. The Tigers lost only one match all season and became England's first official champions.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, important players like Martin Johnson, Neil Back, Graham Rowntree, Richard Cockerill, and Darren Garforth came through the club's youth teams.
Professional Era and European Wins (1993–2003)
From 1993 to 2002, Leicester won nine trophies in ten years. This amazing run started when they won the Pilkington Cup in 1993. In 1994–95, Leicester became Courage League champions.
In 1995–96, rugby union became professional, and the Heineken Cup (European club competition) began. Leicester reached the Heineken Cup final in their first season, but lost. They won the Pilkington Cup Final in 1997. That summer, Martin Johnson was chosen to be captain for the 1997 British Lions tour to South Africa.
Under coach Dean Richards, Leicester had a "golden age." They won four Premiership Rugby titles in a row (1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002). They also won the Heineken Cup twice in a row (2001 and 2002). In 2001, they won the Premiership playoffs and the Heineken Cup, which was a huge achievement. Martin Johnson became the first person to captain two British & Irish Lions tours.
Leicester was the first team to win a European title two years in a row, beating Munster in the 2002 Heineken Cup Final. They also won their fourth Premiership title in a row in 2002. During this time, Leicester went 57 games unbeaten at home.
More Premiership Success (2004–2013)
Pat Howard became the Head Coach in 2005. In his second season, Leicester won their first trophy in five years, the Anglo-Welsh Cup. They also won the Premiership final in 2007. However, they lost the Heineken Cup final that year.
Richard Cockerill took over as coach in 2009. He led Leicester to two Premiership titles in a row. They beat London Irish 10–9 in the 2009 Premiership final. The next year, they won again, beating Saracens 33–27. Leicester lost the 2009 Heineken Cup final to Leinster.
On November 6, 2009, Leicester played against the world champion Springboks and won 22–17. The Tigers continued to reach Premiership finals, losing in 2011 and 2012. They won the LV Cup in 2012. In 2013, the Tigers won their 10th English title, beating local rivals Northampton Saints 37–17.
Recent Years (2013–Present)
After 2013, the Tigers had some challenging seasons. They missed the playoffs for the first time since 2005 in 2017–18. In 2018–19, they finished 11th in the Premiership, which was their lowest ever finish.
In July 2020, Steve Borthwick became the new head coach. In his first season, Borthwick led Leicester to the 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup final. They also finished 6th in the league, which meant they could play in the Champions Cup again.
The Tigers started the 2021–22 season very well, winning their first 15 games in all competitions. They reached the Champions Cup knockout stages for the first time since 2016. In the Premiership, they secured a home playoff semi-final. They beat local rivals Northampton Saints 27–13 in the semi-final.
In the final, Leicester played Saracens. Freddie Burns scored a drop goal in the last minute to win Leicester their 11th English title, just two seasons after finishing 11th.
In December 2022, Steve Borthwick left to become the England head coach. Richard Wigglesworth took over as interim coach. In July 2023, Dan McKellar became the full-time head coach. After one season, McKellar left the club in June 2024. Michael Cheika was appointed as the new head coach in June 2024. In February 2025, it was announced that Cheika would step down at the end of the 2024–25 season. Former Leicester player Geoff Parling was confirmed as the new Head Coach from the 2025–26 season.
Leicester finished the 2024–25 regular season in 2nd place. They beat Sale 21-16 in the semi-final. However, they lost the final 23–21 against Bath.
Women's Team
Leicester Tigers started a women's team on July 15, 2021. They launched it with Lichfield Ladies.
Club Achievements
Leicester holds the record for the most Premiership titles (11). They also have the most consecutive Premiership Final appearances (9) and the most playoff appearances (14). They were the first team to win an away semi-final in the Premiership playoffs.
Major Trophies (1st Team)
- Premiership Rugby
- Champions (11 times): 1988, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2022
- Runners-up (8 times): 1994, 1996, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2025
- European Cup
- Champions (2 times): 2001, 2002
- Runners-up (3 times): 1997, 2007, 2009
- RFU Knockout Cup
- Champions (5 times): 1979, 1980, 1981, 1993, 1997
- Anglo-Welsh Cup
- Champions (3 times): 2007, 2012, 2017
- European Challenge Cup
- Runners-up (1 time): 2020–21
Club Culture
The "Tigers" Nickname
The club's official name is Leicester Football Club, but everyone knows them as "Tigers." The name was first used in February 1885. It probably came from the team's chocolate and yellow playing kit. It might also be linked to the Leicestershire Regiment, who were called 'Tigers' after serving in India.
In their early days, they were also known as "The Death or Glory Boys" because of their black shirts.
Player Numbers and Letters
In the 1926–27 season, Leicester started using letters (A-G) to identify their forwards. By 1931, the whole team used letters. This tradition lasted until 1998, when league rules made them use numbers instead. The Tigers first wore numbers on September 5, 1998.
Today, the letters are still shown in small print on the front of the jersey.
Team Colours
The Tigers' very first kit was black with white shorts and black socks. From 1884 to 1887, they played in chocolate and yellow shirts, which likely led to their nickname.
The famous scarlet, green, and white colours were first used on October 3, 1891. At first, the stripes were vertical. It wasn't until 1895 that the traditional horizontal stripes were introduced. This design, with black shorts and socks, was used until 1906. After a short period in white shirts, they returned to the scarlet, green, and white striped jersey in 1909, keeping navy shorts until 1947 when they switched to white shorts.
The kit design stayed mostly the same from 1947 to 1999, with small changes like adding a manufacturer's logo or a sponsor. In 1999, the Tigers started using a darker green and have had different kit designs since then.
Home Stadium
The club plays its home games at Mattioli Woods Welford Road. The stadium opened in 1892. It can now hold 25,849 people after being redeveloped in 2008 and 2015.
Before the redevelopment, the club thought about sharing a stadium with Leicester City F.C., the city's main football club. However, these plans did not go through.
On June 11, 2007, the club announced plans to increase the stadium's capacity. Work began in 2008 on a new 10,000-seat North Stand. This work was finished for the first home game of the 2009–10 season.
In 2015, the club announced plans to replace the old clubhouse and temporary West Stand with a new building. This work was completed by January 2016.
In October 2020, Mattioli Woods extended their naming rights deal. The stadium became known as Mattioli Woods Welford Road.
Current Team Squad
Senior Squad
The Leicester Tigers senior squad for the 2025–26 season includes: Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.
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Senior Academy Squad
Leicester Tigers' Academy squad is: Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.
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Famous Former Players
Record Holders
David Matthews played the most games for Leicester Tigers, with 502 appearances between 1955 and 1974. Percy Lawrie is the only player to score over 200 tries for the club, with a record 206 tries. Dusty Hare is the club's all-time highest points scorer with 4,507 points.
International Players
Over 175 players from 15 different countries have played for their national team while being a Leicester Tigers player. The first was Jack Miles for England in 1903.
Lions Tourists
Many Leicester Tigers players have been chosen to play for the British & Irish Lions. Some players have toured multiple times:
- 3 tours: Martin Johnson, Neil Back
- 2 tours: Dan Cole, Tom Croft, Martin Corry, Graham Rowntree, Austin Healey, Dean Richards, Rory Underwood, Clive Woodward, Peter Wheeler
Rugby World Cup Players
Many Leicester Tigers players have represented their countries at the Rugby World Cup. For example, in the 2003 World Cup, 8 Tigers players were selected, including 7 for England. In the 2023 World Cup, 10 Tigers players were selected for various nations.
International Captains
Several Leicester Tigers players have also been captains for their national teams, including:
- Martin Johnson (England, 1998–2003; Lions, 1997 & 2001)
- George Ford (England, 2017–2019)
- Julián Montoya (Argentina, 2021–2022)
Coaches
Current Coaches
Geoff Parling, Head coach- Anthony Allen, Assistant coach
- Brett Deacon, Assistant coach
- Mike Forshaw, Assistant coach
Peter Hewat, Assistant coach- Matt Parr, Head of physical performance
- Neil Fowkes, Scrum coach
See also
In Spanish: Leicester Tigers para niños
