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The revelation that Leicester Tigers are up for sale has split its fanbase
By Josh Raisey
Leicester Tigers’ decision to put itself up for sale at £60m was always going to be something that divided their loyal supporters, and so it has.
The English giants announced the move on Tuesday following CVC’s investment in Premiership Rugby last December which gave each club £13m and cleared Leicester’s debt.
In light of this news, many Leicester fans are welcoming this potential sale in the hope that it will help the Tigers return to the top of English rugby again.
Leicester endured their worst season in modern times in 2018/19, finishing 11th in the Premiership and subsequently failing to qualify for the Champions Cup for the first time. This was a bitter blow for English rugby’s most successful team, and the fans clearly feel something must be done.
However, in recent years, Leicester have struggled to compete with the likes of Saracens and Wasps in bringing in new players. The days of the Tigers being able to attract any player in the world seem to be gone, and the financial lure of the Top 14 or England’s wealthier clubs seems too strong.
Therefore, the sale of the club - for a price of £60million, according to the BBC - may provide Leicester with more financial clout when it comes to attracting new players. This is what the fans have said:
However, with Leicester’s success has come a lot of pride in the club and its culture from the fans, who feel that selling the club would lose some of its identity.
The fear of these fans is that the Tigers would become too commercial and could even be subject to a name change as it grows closer to being like football. The culture of the Tigers is sacrosanct to the fans who feel it cannot be subject to change with this sale.
Some fans are suggesting that the Leicester supporters take control of the team, in a similar way to Barcelona Football Club, in order to uphold everything about the club that they do not wish to lose. This is what they have said:
Leicester have the largest and most devoted fanbase in English rugby. As a result, it is understandable that this sale is going to divide the fans. However, what they all want is to see Leicester rise back to the top again after a terrible year.
WATCH: Episode one of The Academy, the six-part RugbyPass documentary series looking at how Leicester Tigers develop their players
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Latest Comments
My ‘fantasy’ team V Ireland,
Including options from ABXV if needed, as V Mun better V Ireland better prep than England.
The most important aspect V Ireland is AB need ALL their loosies AND 'loosie capable locks' on ALL match [except IF(?) any tiring ie the aging & slowing eg Cane]. As follows,
{starting} bench (3rd choice)
1 {De Groot} / Tu’ungafasi (Williams)
2 { anyone that can throw!! }/ Aumua (Brodie McAlister)
Ryan! coach lineouts & Aumua to throw!
3 {Lomax}/ Tosi (Newell )
Tosi immense strength V England
4,5 Locks { P.Tuipulotu, S.Barrett }, Vaa’i, Darry
( Isaia Walker-Leawere)
Vaa’i off V Eng. Assumed due to leg injury(?)
6,7,8 Loose forwards { Sititi, A.Savea, Cane } Vaa’i, S.Barrettm, P.Tuipulotu back up (Devan Flanders, Du'Plessis Kirifi )
9 {Roigard } Ratima ( TJ )
10 {D.McK} Perofeta ( Plummer)
12 {J.Barrett } ALB ( Q.Tupaea )
13 {Proctor} Ioane ( AJ Lam )
Ioane (off V England ) but Irish experience (NO not Sexton!)
14 { Tele’a} Reece (bkup W.Jordan )
11 {C.Clarke} Narawa (K.Naholo)
15 {W.Jordan} Love (Stevenson)
Go to commentsI guess the other option would be to start ALB, he's looked good in the 12 so far when he starts and sets up those outside him. But that would mean putting the vice captain on the bench, which is unlikely. Another option would be to drop Reiko to the bench and play Proctor, though he's gone home so that's not going to happen either.
Both of those players just offer more of the soft distribution skills good centres learn from playing their careers there. Unfortunately that's what's lacking with the current combo.
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