Derby County F.C.–Leicester City F.C. rivalry
Association football rivalry
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The fixture between Leicester City and Derby County is a football rivalry in the East Midlands. The fixture is often called an East Midlands derby. The two clubs have a strong mutual dislike of each other, and the rivalry is keenly felt on the border between both cities and counties. However, Derby supporters generally consider Nottingham Forest to be their main rivals, while Leicester supporters generally consider both Nottingham Forest and Coventry City to be their main rivals.[1]
| Other names | East Midlands derby |
|---|---|
| Location | Derby Leicester (England) |
| Teams | Derby County Leicester City |
| First meeting | 10 February 1894 |
| Latest meeting | Leicester City 2–1 Derby County EFL Championship (29 December 2025) |
| Next meeting | TBD |
| Statistics | |
| Total meetings | 110 |
| Most wins | Derby County (46) |
All-time series | County Derby: 46 Draw: 28 Leicester City: 36 |
Largest victory | Leicester Fosse 6–0 Derby County 1909–10 Second Division (26 February 1910) Leicester Fosse 0–6 Derby County 1914–15 Second Division (28 December 1914) |
  Derby County  Leicester City | |
Historically, in a total of 110 matches between the two sides, there have been 28 draws. Derby have a better overall record against Leicester, winning 46 times, whereas Leicester have won 36 times. However, in recent years, Leicester have dominated the fixture, having won 11 of the last 13 meetings, losing just one.
Head to head
The table below demonstrates the competitive match results between the two sides.[2]
| Competition | Leicester City wins | Draws | Derby County wins |
|---|---|---|---|
| Football League | 30 | 26 | 35 |
| Premier League | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| FA Cup | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| League Cup | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 36 | 28 | 46 |
Crossing the divide
During both Derby and Leicester's history several players have played for both clubs and a manager has managed both.
Players
Derby then Leicester
- Johnny McMillan
- Jack Bowers
- Tommy Eggleston
- David McCulloch
- Johnny Morris
- Willie Carlin
- Gerry Daly
- Dave Langan
- Gary Mills, also played for Nottingham Forest and Notts County
- Bobby Davison
- Ian Ormondroyd
- Phil Gee
- Gary Rowett
- Dean Sturridge
- Jacob Laursen
- Lee Morris
- Steve Howard
- Matt Oakley[3]
- Chris Powell
- Marc Edworthy
- James Vaughan
Leicester then Derby
- Mick O'Brien
- John Summers
- David Nish
- David Webb
- Trevor Christie, also played for Nottingham Forest and Notts County.
- Mark Wallington
- Mark Grew
- Peter Shilton, also played for Nottingham Forest.
- Ian Wilson
- Paul Kitson
- Gary Charles also played for Nottingham Forest.
- Russell Hoult
- Ashley Ward
- Spencer Prior
- Chris Makin
- Kevin Poole
- Ryan Smith
- Robbie Savage – played for Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers in between.
- Paul Dickov – loaned to Derby County from Leicester in 2009.[4]
- Jordan Stewart
- Lee Hendrie
- DJ Campbell
- David Martin
- Zak Whitbread
- Michael Keane – loaned to Leicester City, and later Derby County, from Manchester United
- Jesse Lingard – loaned to Leicester City, and later Derby County, from Manchester United
- David Nugent
- Martyn Waghorn – played for Rangers, Wigan Athletic and Ipswich Town in between.
- Tom Lawrence
- Andy King – loaned to Derby County from Leicester in January 2019.
- Richard Stearman
Managers and staff
- Nigel Pearson – managed Leicester in 2 separate spells, left Derby by mutual consent on 8 October 2016
- Kevin Phillips – Player and coach at Leicester, later first team coach at Derby
Results since 2006
- Derby County win Leicester City win Draw
Notable results
| Leicester City | 2–1 | Derby County |
|---|---|---|
Walsh  41', 84' |
[23] | Johnson 28' |
| Leicester Fosse | 0–6 | Derby County |
|---|---|---|
| Leicester Fosse | 6–0 | Derby County |
|---|---|---|
| Leicester Fosse | 0–0 | Derby County |
|---|---|---|
Honours
| Team | League | FA Cup | League Cup | FA Charity Shield/
FA Community Shield |
Total trophies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leicester City | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| Derby County | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Total | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 12 |
Hooliganism
The fixture between the two teams, like the majority of local derbies in English football, has resulted in a number of football hooliganism related incidents.
In 1985, after a League Cup match between the two sides which saw Leicester eliminated at the hands of Derby, there was a widespread "riot".[24]
In 2009, James Underwood, a Derby supporter aligned with the firm Derby Lunatic Fringe, was involved in an incident with Leicester supporters. In 2010, Underwood was then banned from attending football matches for three years for his role in that incident, among other separate clashes involving supporters of Everton, Nottingham Forest and Sheffield Wednesday.[25]
Miscellaneous
- The highest scoring game between the two sides ended 5–2 to Derby County in the 1928/29 season, in which year Leicester achieved their second highest ever league finish.[26]
- The last fixture played away from both clubs' home stadiums was in 1994, in the play-off final at the old Wembley Stadium. Leicester won the match 2–1 to gain promotion to the Premier League.[26]
- The last time Derby have won against Leicester away from home was in 2002 at Filbert Street, the year both clubs were relegated from the Premier League. Leicester won the reverse fixture 3–2.[26]
- According to the Football fan census, Leicester and Derby are 'traditional' rivals.
- Leicester as well as Forest refer to Derby as 'the sheep', a reference to their nickname being the Rams.[26]
- Of the two clubs, Leicester have a better record against Nottingham Forest.[26]