Leicester’s Thai owners seek US$300m for club portfolio

Leicester City’s Thai owners are seeking US$300 million (£222 million), or about 9.9 billion baht, for the club and a wider portfolio of football and property assets being marketed to potential investors, The Athletic reported on Wednesday (August 12).

A source close to the process, who was not identified, said a sale was more likely to be completed for around US$200 million (£148 million), or about 6.6 billion baht, following Leicester’s relegation to League One and a succession of heavy financial losses.

Citigroup has prepared a sales brochure titled Project Lineup, which has been circulated among prospective investors. The document presents Leicester’s sporting operations, infrastructure and associated clubs as a single investment package.

King Power’s appointment of Citi to gauge interest from possible buyers was first reported in July. Leicester City declined to comment on the sale process when contacted by The Athletic.

Club and assets bundled in Project Lineup

The package includes Leicester City’s men’s and women’s teams, its Category One academy, King Power Stadium and the club’s Seagrave training centre.

The Seagrave complex, which Leicester moved into around six years ago, cost approximately £100 million to develop.

Also listed are Belvoir Drive, now used by the women’s team, and land outside King Power Stadium that the club acquired for £11.6 million as part of a proposed stadium expansion.

The expansion plan was suspended after Leicester’s relegation from the Premier League at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Project Lineup also includes OH Leuven, King Power’s partner club in Belgium, among the assets available to prospective buyers.

The document values Leicester’s three principal properties at a combined £204 million as of 2025. King Power Stadium is valued at £74 million, Seagrave at £121 million and Belvoir Drive at £9 million.

League One fall weighs on expected sale price

Leicester’s sporting decline and financial position are expected to reduce the price investors are prepared to pay below the US$300-million figure sought by the owners.

The club’s four latest sets of accounts since 2021 recorded losses of £92.5 million, £89.7 million, £19.4 million and £71.1 million respectively.

The most recent £71.1-million pre-tax loss covered the 2024-25 season, when Leicester were relegated from the Premier League. Their subsequent relegation from the Championship placed the 2016 English champions in League One, the third tier of English football.

Despite those losses and the downturn in results, the club is expected to attract interest because of the scale of its infrastructure, academy and property holdings.

Sales pitch highlights trophies and academy record

Project Lineup places particular emphasis on Leicester’s achievements since King Power and the Srivaddhanaprabha family acquired the club from Milan Mandarić in 2010.

The acquisition price is described in the report as approximately £35 million to £40 million.

Under the Thai owners, Leicester won promotion to the Premier League in 2014 before claiming the title in 2016. The club then secured its first FA Cup in 2021.

The brochure describes Leicester as the most successful club in English Football League history and promotes its status as a major one-club city with a broad and loyal supporter base.

It also presents the Foxes as well placed to challenge for promotion and describes the sale as a rare opportunity to acquire a club with a strong record of returning to higher divisions.

OH Leuven is portrayed as providing Leicester with a stable and mutually beneficial multi-club partnership, offering advantages in player development, recruitment and performance analysis.

Leicester’s academy is another major part of the sales pitch. The brochure says academy graduates have generated more than £250 million in transfer fees over the past five years.

Fan pressure grows after four-season decline

The sale process follows four seasons of deteriorating results on and off the pitch and increasing frustration among Leicester supporters.

Much of the initial criticism focused on football director Jon Rudkin, but discontent increasingly shifted towards the owners over the past two seasons, with some supporters calling for the club to be sold.

In January, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, known as Khun Top, reaffirmed his commitment to Leicester and pledged to continue the vision of his late father, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.

Vichai and four other people died in a helicopter crash outside King Power Stadium in 2018. A memorial garden now stands at the crash site, while a statue of Vichai has been erected outside the stadium on Filbert Way.

Aiyawatt recalled arriving at Leicester with his father on August 12, 2010, saying their love for football and the club had remained central to the family’s ownership.

He said at the time that selling Leicester was not the right solution and that he wanted to complete his work before leaving, with his immediate priority being to restore the club to a successful position.

Aiyawatt added that he might eventually consider a buyer capable of transforming Leicester to the level of Manchester City, although he believed that possibility remained a long way off.

The family’s emotional connection to Vichai had previously been expected to keep it committed to returning Leicester to the Premier League before considering an exit.

The Athletic now reports that the Srivaddhanaprabha family has decided to market Leicester and the wider portfolio, although no transaction or buyer has been confirmed.

Source: Thansettakij