# 2014–15 Leicester City F.C. season
The 2014–15 [Leicester City F.C.](https://www.edgepedia.org/leicester-city-f-c) season was the club's first Premier League campaign in ten years, in which [Leicester](https://www.edgepedia.org/leicester) finished 14th with 41 points after a late-season revival from bottom of the table at Christmas that became known as the "Great Escape".[1](https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/sites/teens/files/how_did_leicester_city_win_the_premier_league_-_transcript.pdf) • [2](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [3](https://www.sportingnews.com/uk/premier-league/news/leicester-city-premier-league-records-history-epl-seasons-promoted/902f11e38c83c073560bb099) [Nigel Pearson](https://www.edgepedia.org/nigel-pearson) managed the side, which had won promotion from the Championship the previous season.[4](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693680)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Final position | 14th of 20 in the Premier League[2](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) |
| Record | 38 played, 11 won, 8 drawn, 19 lost; 41 points, goal difference −9[5](https://www.statmuse.com/fc/club/leicester-city-69/2015) • [3](https://www.sportingnews.com/uk/premier-league/news/leicester-city-premier-league-records-history-epl-seasons-promoted/902f11e38c83c073560bb099) |
| Low point | Bottom of the table at Christmas 2014, and seven points adrift of safety after a 4-3 defeat to Tottenham[1](https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/sites/teens/files/how_did_leicester_city_win_the_premier_league_-_transcript.pdf) • [2](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) |
| The escape | Seven wins from the last nine league matches, including 22 points in the final nine games, more than any other Premier League side[2](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [6](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693677) |
| Signature result | 5-3 comeback win over Manchester United on 21 September 2014, after trailing by two goals twice[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html) |
| Cup runs | FA Cup fifth round (lost 2-1 to Aston Villa); League Cup second round (lost 0-1 to Shrewsbury Town)[2](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [8](https://www.11v11.com/teams/leicester-city/tab/matches/season/2015/) |
| Leading scorers | Leonardo Ulloa 11 league goals, Jamie Vardy 5, Riyad Mahrez 4[9](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf) |
## Bright start and collapse
Leicester's return to the top flight opened with draws against Everton and Arsenal and a famous 5-3 win over Manchester United in the opening month, a result few expected to be followed by a relegation battle.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) In the United match on 21 September, Leicester came from two goals down twice to win 5-3 against a side featuring [Wayne Rooney](https://www.edgepedia.org/wayne-rooney), Angel di Maria, and [Radamel Falcao](https://www.edgepedia.org/radamel-falcao), a result that lifted them to sixth in the table.[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html)
The recovery never came. A 2-0 defeat at Crystal Palace began a run of 13 games without a win, and by Christmas 2014 Leicester were bottom of the Premier League.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [1](https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/sites/teens/files/how_did_leicester_city_win_the_premier_league_-_transcript.pdf) December brought five consecutive league defeats before a 1-0 win at Hull City on 28 December, the club's first league victory in more than three months.[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html) A 4-3 defeat to [Tottenham](https://www.edgepedia.org/tottenham) in March left them seven points adrift of safety at the bottom of the table.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415)
## The Great Escape
April 2015 turned the season around: Leicester won four of five league matches, beating West Ham United, West Bromwich Albion, Swansea City, and Burnley to climb out of the relegation zone.[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html) The most dramatic of these came at [The Hawthorns](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hawthorns), where [Robert Huth](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-huth) and [Jamie Vardy](https://www.edgepedia.org/jamie-vardy) scored in the last 10 minutes of a 3-2 win over West Brom.[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html) Across the final nine games Leicester took 22 points, more than any other Premier League side in that span.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415)
Survival was secured on 16 May with a 0-0 draw at [Sunderland](https://www.edgepedia.org/sunderland), and the campaign closed with a 5-1 home win over relegated Queens Park Rangers on the final day.[7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html)
## Cups, players, and the manager
In the cup competitions Leicester fared poorly. They were eliminated in the second round of the League Cup by Shrewsbury Town and reached the [FA Cup](https://www.edgepedia.org/fa-cup) fifth round, where a shock 2-1 win at Tottenham, secured by late goals from [Leonardo Ulloa](https://www.edgepedia.org/leonardo-ulloa) and [Jeffrey Schlupp](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeffrey-schlupp), preceded a 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html)
Argentinian striker Leonardo Ulloa, an £8m signing from Brighton, was the season's leading scorer with 11 goals, more than double Jamie Vardy's total of five and nearly three times [Riyad Mahrez](https://www.edgepedia.org/riyad-mahrez)'s four.[9](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf) [Esteban Cambiasso](https://www.edgepedia.org/esteban-cambiasso) was widely credited as instrumental in the escape, scoring vital goals and providing leadership, and won the club's Player of the Year award; Vardy's debut top-flight season earned him an England call-up.[9](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf) • [10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415)
Pearson dominated headlines off the pitch as well as on it. He grabbed Crystal Palace's James McArthur by the throat during a 1-0 loss, and after a 3-1 defeat to Chelsea in late April he delivered an infamous "ostrich" tirade at a journalist.[10](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415) • [7](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html) The club's Thai owners had been concerned about his behavior during the season, and the man responsible for the escape was sacked after it; Claudio Ranieri replaced him for 2015-16.[9](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf) • [4](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693680)
## Aftermath
The escape's significance grew with time. Leicester had been on the brink of relegation before the end-of-season run, and the following season, under Ranieri, the club went from 5,000-1 outsiders to Premier League champions for the first time.[4](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693680) Jamie Vardy's contract, signed just before the start of 2014-15, contained a £6m release clause active in the event of relegation, a provision the escape rendered moot.[9](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf)
## References
1. [How did Leicester City win the Premier League? (transcript), British Council LearnEnglish Teens](https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/sites/teens/files/how_did_leicester_city_win_the_premier_league_-_transcript.pdf)
2. [Leicester City Premier League season review 2014/15, Sky Sports](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415)
3. [When were Leicester City last in the Premier League? Sporting News](https://www.sportingnews.com/uk/premier-league/news/leicester-city-premier-league-records-history-epl-seasons-promoted/902f11e38c83c073560bb099)
4. [2015/16 Season Review, Premier League](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693680)
5. [Leicester City 2015 Stats, Fixtures, Table, StatMuse](https://www.statmuse.com/fc/club/leicester-city-69/2015)
6. [2014/15 Season Review, Premier League](https://www.premierleague.com/en/news/693677)
7. [End-of-season report: Leicester City, Sports Mole](https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/leicester-city/feature/end-of-season-report-leicester-city_223788.html)
8. [Leicester City match record: 2015, 11v11](https://www.11v11.com/teams/leicester-city/tab/matches/season/2015/)
9. [The Highs and Lows of Leicester City (sample), Pitch Publishing](https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/sites/default/files/associated_downloads/The%20Highs%20and%20Lows%20of%20Leicester%20City%20SAMPLE.pdf)
10. [Leicester City Premier League season review 2014/15, Sky Sports](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/9863462/leicester-city-premier-league-season-review-201415)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football competitions and records › Seasons and editions › Club seasons › English Premier League club seasons › 2010s club seasons*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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