Latest news with #AiyawattSrivaddhanaprabha
Telegraph
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Marti Cifuentes on course to be confirmed as new Leicester head coach
Leicester City are moving closer to appointing Martí Cifuentes as their new head coach. Cifuentes, who was previously in charge at Queens Park Rangers, is in advanced talks with the Championship club and is likely to be confirmed as Ruud van Nistelrooy's successor by the end of this week. Leicester are preparing for the Championship after a second relegation in three seasons and interviewed Cifuentes at the Holyport base of club owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha late last week. Chris Wilder, Gary O'Neil and Michael Carrick are understood to have also been spoken to, but Cifuentes has now emerged as the Midlands club's preferred choice. Cifuentes departed QPR by mutual consent at the end of last season, but Leicester will have to pay around £500,000 in compensation in order to appoint him. Telegraph Sport understands that Leicester have now initiated talks with QPR to conclude a deal with the 43-year-old. Cifuentes appeals to Leicester as he is known for an identifiable style of play based on possession and pressing, which is similar to the model under the club's former manager Enzo Maresca. The Spaniard performed brilliantly at Swedish club Hammarby IF, guiding them into the Uefa Conference League. His time at QPR was rather mixed, leading the club to safety in his first season before a second campaign which ended with an acrimonious exit amid suggestions of a fall-out with senior officials. Cifuentes's departure from QPR was confirmed last month, following a short period of gardening leave. Leicester parted company with Van Nistelrooy last month and are rebuilding their squad in the Championship. With three separate charges from the Premier League for alleged breaches of financial rules, Leicester are facing an uncertain future with a possible points deduction hanging over them. Leicester kick off their new season at home to Sheffield Wednesday on August 10.
The Sun
24-06-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Top horse owner ‘facing complete business collapse' with duty free empire at risk of falling
A TOP horse owner is said to be facing 'total business collapse' - with his duty free empire at risk of falling completely. Sun Sport told you Leicester City chairman Aiyawatt "Top" Srivaddhanaprabha has left his role as chief executive of King Power with the company staring at "massive losses and potential failure". 2 2 Top, 39, is now "group executive chairman" with his role switching to "determining the direction and setting the policy frameworks for business operations". There are fears over what that means for 5000-1 Premier League winners Leicester City's future amid their current financial woes. The Foxes have been relegated from the Premier League and face a likely points deduction in the EFL next term. Top continues to have a large number of racehorses - including one called Straight Back Up - under the hugely successful King Power banner. With names such as Fox Vardy, Fivethousandtoone, The Foxes and Dillydingdillydong, the horses have always paid homage to the Srivaddhanaprabhas and their King Power/Leicester association. And, thanks to top class trainers such as Andrew Balding, the thoroughbreds have picked up some top prizes too. King Power Racing Co Ltd has earned more than £5million over the past five years on the Flat. Their best year was 2019 - the year after Top's father Khun Vichai and four others were killed in a helicopter crash at Leicester's stadium. The operation had earnings of £2.4m that season thanks in part to Donjuan Triumphant's Group 1 Champions Sprint Stakes win at Ascot. That was worth £330,000 and came on the back of other big-race successes including Shine So Bright's City Of York Stakes victory and Pivoine's £125,000 win in the John Smith's Cup. But the money has dried up somewhat in subsequent seasons. King Power horses THE horses owned by King Power all have Leicester themes. Here are some of the more memorable to have run over the years. Fox Vardy Dillydingdillydong Bielsa Fivethousandtoone The Foxes Fantastic Fox Fox Tal Foxes Tales Art Power Happy Power Teumessias Fox Proud To Be Fox Straight Back Up Good Luck Fox Come On Leicester Fox Shinji Earnings dropped by just shy of £350,000 from 2023 to 2024 despite the number of winners jumping from 27 to 29. And though there is much of the Flat season still to go, King Power have had a 12 per cent strike rate this year - matching their lowest ever - with 13 winners at the time of writing. That adds up to earnings of £417,109 - but with plenty still to play for over the coming months and with loads of the King Power horses having lots of entries. King Power's flagbearers now look to be Group 2 hero Bellum Justum and The Foxes, both trained by Kingsclere handler Balding. Bellum Justum landed a monster £830,000 win when he claimed the Nashville Derby in Kentucky last August. He then won the Group 2 Betfred Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket in May this year - bringing home another £70,000. While The Foxes' Group 2 Huxley Stakes win at Chester in May was worth just shy of £75,000. The money is significant on its own but nothing compared to the situation the King Power company finds itself in. King Power had a 30-year near-monopoly on duty free concessions in Thailand. But, while aiming to renegotiate contracts at four of the country's major airports, want all rental fees to be waived. That is expected to lead to losses of £450m-plus for the state-run Airports of Thailand, which rejected the opening offer from King Power. Top's replacement Nitinai Sirismatthakarn said: "It's like a patient surviving on oxygen. "The company's intention was to ask AOT to remove the oxygen because we can't cope anymore. This was the signal we sent. "We're in a position where we're saying we can't manage, and we're asking AOT for help. "We'll listen. If the conditions allow us to remain profitable, we'll stay. If not, and we can't make it work together, we'll accept that." Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who:
The Sun
23-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Leicester City's future shrouded in doubt with Thai owners facing total business collapse
LEICESTER'S future has been left shrouded in uncertainty as their Thai owners face a total business collapse. Foxes chairman Aiyawatt 'Top' Srivaddhanaprabha left his role as chief executive of duty free giant King Power with the company staring at massive losses and potential failure. 1 Top has switched to being 'group executive chairman' where he will 'play an important role in determining the direction and setting the policy framework for business operations'. But that adds to the club's financial woes after their relegation from the Premier League and likely points deduction in the EFL next term. Top, 39, took charge of the Foxes and the King Power company following the fatal helicopter crash that cost the lives of his father Khun Vichai - in charge of the club since 2010 - and four others as it left the stadium following a Prem draw with West Ham in 2018. He bankrolled the club's return to the Prem after their relegation in 2023 but watched as Ruud van Nistelrooy's appointment as manager to succeed Steve Cooper in December failed to arrest an instant return to the EFL. But the club's on-field issues look to be paling into insignificance by comparison with the financial woes afflicting the King Power company. King Power enjoyed a three decade near-monopoly on duty free concessions in Thailand but is aiming to completely renegotiate contracts at four of the country's major airports, asking for all rental fees to be waived. That is expected to lead to losses of £450m-plus for the state-run Airports of Thailand, which rejected the opening offer from King Power. But in a signal of the depths of the crisis, Top's replacement at the helm, Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, revealed: 'It's like a patient surviving on oxygen. 'The company's intention was to ask AOT to remove the oxygen because we can't cope anymore. This was the signal we sent.' The admissions signal the depth of the cash-flow operations that threaten both King Power's operations and its 7,000 employees. He added: 'We're in a position where we're saying we can't manage, and we're asking AOT for help. "We'll listen. If the conditions allow us to remain profitable, we'll stay. If not, and we can't make it work together, we'll accept that." It comes with Leicester still expected to part company with van Nistelrooy following their relegation and the likelihood of a points deduction after a Prem Arbitration Tribunal ruled they can be charged and punished for a PSR breach for the 2023-24 promotion campaign.
New York Times
03-06-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Leicester City Transfer DealSheet: Summer window latest, key positions and likely exits
Leicester City's hierarchy don't say a lot publicly, but sometimes silence speaks a thousand words. That is certainly the case with manager Ruud van Nistelrooy and his position at the club after relegation. The Dutchman has presented to owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha and director of football Jon Rudkin what he thinks needs to be done to get Leicester back into the Premier League next season. Advertisement The chairman, known as Khun Top, has stated Leicester's hierarchy have begun planning has for the next campaign. The problem is, they haven't told Van Nistelrooy what that plan is. It is fair to conclude Leicester's strategy may not include Van Nistelrooy, but what the plan actually is remains to be seen. There is a lot of work to be done this summer to get Leicester back on an even keel and in some sort of shape to mount a promotion challenge. So what can we expect from Leicester this summer? Usually, it is the manager who has the final say on recruitment so, until the identity of who will be leading Leicester into the Championship is known, very little will be done on incomings. There is also a prospect of a business plan being imposed on the club by the EFL, restricting their budget and forcing them to sell assets. As things stand Van Nistelrooy is still the manager, but after the final game of the season at Bournemouth he admitted he still hadn't had a planning meeting with the club's senior management with a view to next season. Leicester could be waiting until the end of the financial year, at the end of June, to make a change so the cost of another managerial change is in the next financial year for profit and sustainability rule (PSR) purposes, but the longer the uncertainty continues, the more time is wasted. All of them. Three first-team players left at the end of their contracts — Jamie Vardy, Danny Ward and Daniel Iversen — and there will inevitably have to be sales after relegation as Leicester look to readapt to life in the Championship. Some assets will have to be sold, such as goalkeeper Mads Hermansen, and Leicester will also try to move on some of their higher earners as they try to conform to the financial restrictions and realities. Advertisement As things stand, Leicester look OK in the full-back positions and the promotion of Ben Nelson after his loan at Oxford United will give them another option at centre-back. Likewise, before sales, they look OK in defensive midfield too. Abdul Fatawu returning from injury will boost the wide options, and they have plenty of them, but goalkeeper and central striker positions are a problem. There is so much uncertainty — not just about who the manager will be, but also what restrictions they may face in the EFL, which could restrict their ability to recruit. Replacing Vardy. Even at the age of 38 he was the team's player of the season last year, as well as top scorer. He was also a hugely influential figure in the dressing room, a talisman for the other players and role model for the young professionals. His departure leaves Leicester with just one striker, Patson Daka, who may be sold this summer if they can find a buyer, so they have to try to find a solution. Likewise, the departures of Ward and Iversen leave them short of goalkeeping cover, especially as No 1 Hermansen is expected to be sold. Jakub Stolarczyk has shown he is ready to step up, but he needs cover. Not at the moment, while there is so much uncertainty surrounding the manager's position and what the budget will be. Leicester don't want to make moves for players, bring them in, and then find that the next manager — if they do sack Van Nistelrooy — doesn't want them. They made that mistake last summer when they handed Steve Cooper an £80million transfer kitty and sacked him after 12 games. Van Nistelrooy came in and only one new recruit made a consistent impact on the first team under him: Bilal El Khannouss. The inconsistency in the philosophy of the five managers that Leicester have appointed across the last three seasons has led to a scattergun transfer policy. If Van Nistelrooy stays, then Harry Winks and Jannik Vestergaard, two of the squad's higher earners, may have to move on. Neither featured in matchday squads towards the end of the season after falling out of favour. Wout Faes and Victor Kristiansen may also need to move on, and will probably want to move too. Advertisement The last time Leicester were in the Championship they tried to sell Boubakary Soumare, but had to settle for a season-long loan to Sevilla. He will likely move back to the continent, while time may also be up for Daka, who has failed to deliver consistently. There will be nine players out of contract at the end of next season: Soumare, James Justin, Winks, Daka, Luke Thomas, Ricardo Pereira, Jordan Ayew, Conor Coady and Stolarczyk. If Leicester want to cash in on them this may be the last opportunity to do so. Then there are the players they would like to keep but may have to sell for financial reasons, such as Hermansen and El Khannouss, who have both shown they can perform at Premier League level. If permanent deals for contracted players can't be done because there are clubs unwilling to pay the asking price or the player's wage demands, then loans may be the only option to reduce the wage bill. That was the case two years ago when Soumare went to Sevilla. Previous attempts to move on Vestergaard also failed. Three out-of-contract players have already left, while eight of the development squad have been released, but until the matter of who will be the manager next season is settled and the club knows its position in terms of budget and profit and sustainability rule sanctions then there is so much uncertainty. The only positive about relegation with five games still to go was that the club could have started their planning for the next season early to steal a march on many of their rivals, but they haven't taken that opportunity. Leicester certainly won't have a £107m budget this time in the Championship. The fact they had a budget that was £30m more than their rivals upset a lot of people two years ago, including in the EFL, who forecasted they would be in breach of PSR and tried to impose a business plan on the club. Leicester were able to fight off that challenge, arguing that such a sanction was premature as they were still in the process of readjusting to the Championship after having had the eighth-biggest budget in the Premier League when they were relegated. That argument will be difficult to make this time and they are also facing three charges from the Premier League for breaching PSR for their last season in the Championship in 2023-24. The timescale of the confidential process of those charges is not known, but it may not be until November that Leicester discover the outcome, and then there will be the appeal process. They could be facing a hefty points deduction but they could also be facing a business plan this time. Life in the Championship will be significantly more difficult and complicated this time around. (Top photos: Mads Hermansen, left, and Jamie Vardy; Getty Images)
Telegraph
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Jamie Vardy's farewell party a convenient distraction from Leicester's rudderless decline
Jamie Vardy will wave farewell to Leicester City this weekend and his departure serves as a brutal reminder of how far the club have fallen. Vardy has rescued Leicester on so many occasions and will be at it again on Sunday, saving the club from a potentially toxic atmosphere over a season he has branded a 's---show'. The final game for Leicester 's greatest-ever player, against another relegated club in Ipswich Town, promises to be an emotional and poignant afternoon. He has been present to help deliver a multitude of memories, including a Premier League title, FA Cup, magical European nights and 199 goals. If there is to be a glorious end to this fairy tale, Vardy, 38, will score his 200th goal at King Power Stadium in his 500th, and final, match for the club. There is little doubt that his goodbye comes at a very convenient time for owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha and Jon Rudkin, the club's director of football. On Sunday the full focus will be on the club's 'GOAT' (Greatest Of All Time) – as it should be – and all the problems from a nightmarish campaign will be briefly pushed aside. Vardy's goals... #1️⃣ #5️⃣0️⃣ #1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ #1️⃣5️⃣0️⃣ #1️⃣9️⃣9️⃣ The 🐐 — Leicester City (@LCFC) May 14, 2025 Yet as Leicester prepare for a future in the Championship without their £1 million legend, so many questions remain unanswered. Nearly four weeks after the club's relegation was confirmed, there has been no public statement on how they intend to bounce back. Ruud van Nistelrooy, the head coach, is still waiting for clarity on what his future holds. He was unable to prevent relegation and, despite encouraging signs in recent weeks, the expectation is still that he will leave. For a club whose communication from the boardroom to managers has often been poor, this is no way to treat a Premier League legend. Regardless of his record. Van Nistelrooy is in complete limbo. He presented his vision for the club's future early last month, before relegation was even confirmed. In those talks, he outlined how he envisaged reshaping the squad with a list of potential signings. He also highlighted the strength of the club's academy, and how talented teenagers such as Jeremy Monga and Jake Evans will be key players in the future. Since that day, there has been silence. Van Nistelrooy has no idea whether he will remain in charge for next season. With so much uncertainty, the club are drifting. Worryingly for Van Nistelrooy, players available on free transfers are already slipping through his fingers. He said on Friday: 'There is no news on this [my future] to bring and when there is, I will let you know. I said five or six weeks ago that it needed to be the sooner the better. 'It's visible in performance and points, and goals scored and conceded, that we have improved. We can't take away the disappointment of relegation but I'm happy with how the players have been performing. We want to finish the season as well as we can.' This weekend, many players and staff members from the memorable Premier League title-winning season of 2015-16 will be present. Danny Drinkwater, Shinji Okazaki and Matty James are confirmed attendees, while Nigel Pearson – the manager who signed Vardy from Fleetwood in May 2012 – is also expected to be there. Many of them will be pained by what has unfolded over the past few years: two relegations in three seasons, declining standards and a poor culture in place of one that was once a huge source of pride. Fans are demanding change but not expecting it. The threat of apathy replacing anger should be a serious concern for Leicester's board. Externally, there will be tired accusations of entitlement and that Leicester's relegation is the cycle of football. Those accusations completely miss the point. Leicester had a shot at glory and then squandered it. Ahead of this weekend, fans' group Union FS issued a statement claiming that plans for a Tifo dedicated to Vardy had been blocked by the club. Leicester are rumoured to be honouring Vardy by using an external agency. 'Tifo by fans, not hired hands' was the title of the Union FS statement. Ipswich (H) — Union FS (@UFS2013) May 13, 2025 What is next for Vardy? He will fly out for a family holiday early next week and has been excused from Leicester's final game at Bournemouth. The difference between finishing 18th and 19th is worth almost £3 million, with Ipswich facing West Ham at home on the last day. Leicester will go above Ipswich this weekend with a win. Yet Van Nistelrooy will go into the Bournemouth match without his leading scorer, as Leicester and Ipswich fight for the dubious honour of finishing third from bottom. Vardy was always going to bid farewell on his own terms. But his absence next weekend still feels rather odd. Next season he will be watching from afar, perhaps in the Premier League, and the big question is what happens next for the club he taught to dream.
