Hooliganism warning ahead of Premier League season

Leicester City were relegated and tempers flared between fans after the match

Police have warned they will be taking a zero tolerance approach to violence from fans visiting Leicester City's King Power Stadium this season.

The message - on the eve of the club's return to the Premier League - follows a football banning order being handed to a 16th person involved in violence on the last day of the 2022-23 season.

Leicester City beat West Ham United at home with goals from Harvey Barnes and Wout Faes but were relegated to the Championship by Everton’s win.

A fight broke out between rival supporters outside a pub on Aylestone Road in the city following the final whistle on Sunday 28 May 2023.

Leicestershire Police said they identified and charged 16 men involved in the fracas, with all pleading guilty and the final defendant being sentenced on Thursday at Leicester Magistrates’ Court.

'Small number'

The force said all of those involved had received football banning orders of between three and five years, preventing them from attending any regulated football match in the UK and also preventing overseas travel when the team they support, or the national team, are playing abroad.

Some of the men have also been banned from entering areas in Leicester on match days both before and after the game.

PC David Stevens, Leicestershire Police’s dedicated football officer, said: “Thousands of home and away fans attend the King Power Stadium and the surrounding city each season without any issue.

“Unfortunately, there are a small number of people who choose to be violent and cause disorder.

“There is no place for this type of behaviour, and it will not be tolerated by police or the club.”

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