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A Compilation of Tributes

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Column
 by  
Jonathan White
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha: Leicester City owner’s legacy is a lesson for every football club
Thai billionaire Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha gave millions to local charities
Not many football club chairmen can say they are genuinely loved by fans
PUBLISHED : Saturday, 03 November, 2018, 3:29pm
UPDATED : Saturday, 03 November, 2018, 3:33pm


It’s been a week since the helicopter crash at the King Power Stadium that killed Leicester’s Thai billionaire owner, two members of staff and two pilots.

The football world has seen an outpouring of emotion over their deaths and in the case of Vichai it has been nothing but praise for his time at the helm.

It took him four years to deliver on his promise of getting the Foxes back to the Premier League from the Championship, where they were languishing when the consortium he led bought the club in 2010. Two years later Leicester were the champions of England for the first time.


That barely believable rise to the top is even more remarkable given they did it with an £80 million (US$10.2 million) wage bill – lower than 14 other clubs in the Premier League that season.

N’Golo Kante and Riyad Mahrez, Leicester’s best two players, have now been sold for huge profits to Chelsea and Manchester City, the two teams that have since won the title.


That fairy tale triumph massively overdelivered on Vichai’s promise to break into the Premier League top five and bring European football to the King Power Stadium.

The Champions League came to town and the Leicester reached the quarter-finals in their debut campaign among the continental elite.

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha: BBC’s Dan Roan sorry for ‘mistress’ comment about dead Leicester owner’s assistant Nusara Suknamai


But it wasn’t just on the pitch that Vichai endeared himself to Foxes fans.

Not many football supporters have seen their team win the league but far fewer have also seen Andrea Bocelli sing Nessun Dorma to celebrate it.

That’s what happened at Leicester City. Sixty randomly-chosen fans also celebrated Vichai’s 60th birthday last year with a free season ticket renewal.

The rest of the 32,000 crowd, at least those over the age of 18, had to make do with a free pint of beer, just as they had done for his previous two birthdays.

Small gestures like that mean a lot to fans, especially in the context of modern football.


The money in the game has meant that profits are prioritised over performance, and most Premier League clubs are in a position to give away their tickets for every game and still make money. This has coincided with changes in ownership that have proved contentious, such as the oft-protested Glazer family at Manchester United.

 

In many ways, Vichai was a charming throwback. While he might not have been local to Leicester, his stewardship was closer than most to the days when clubs were run by a benevolent business magnate from the area.

“Khun Vichai”, as he was affectionately known at the club, put in over £100 million of his own money and cleared the clubs debts in the process. But beyond that, he made sure that everyone connected with the club felt like they mattered.

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha’s son Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha (second left), Jamie Vardy (second right) and Kasper Schmeichel (right) pay tribute to the club chairman. Photo: AP
Family is the word that many of Leicester’s players have used in their own tributes to their chairman. That inclusivity extended beyond those on the pitch and in the stands at the King Power Stadium. Vichai donated millions of pounds to local hospitals and thousands more to a Leicester City fan who was looking for donations to fund research into his son’s rare genetic disorder.

Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha: son Aiyawatt promises to continue Leicester owner’s ‘big dreams’ after helicopter crash

Leicester-born Emile Heskey, who played for the club during their previous high point under Martin O’Neill’s management in the 1990s, spoke of how much Vichai was loved in the city because of these gestures. The love and respect from fans of other clubs has been seen with the tributes laid at the ground.


Fans are sceptical of foreign owners but Vichai taught every owner, overseas and domestic, how it can be done.

The number of clubs up and down the English leagues, and in every other league for that matter, that would benefit from taking his approach is almost endless.

Ask the fans of Newcastle United, Charlton Athletic or Blackpool.

Vichai’s son “Top” has promised to continue to deliver his father’s vision. That’s a reason, even in these darkest of days for Leicester fans, to see a bright future.

It might not contain another fairy tale Premier League win but the owners, the players and fans will be in it together at a club that is enviably united.

 

https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/2171528/vichai-srivaddhanaprabha-leicester-city-owners-legacy-lesson-every

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Football fans united after tragic events in Leicester
PUBLISHED: 07:00 03 November 2018 Spud Thornhill


Normally a Norwich City win makes my weekend, but the awful incident at Leicester and Glenn Hoddle being taken ill made me, like so many people around the country, deeply upset and made our win over the Bees irrelevant for the time being.

Watching the scenes last Saturday at the King Power Stadium following the helicopter crash was very distressing and all the fears that Leicester City’s owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was on board were sadly confirmed when it was announced that he and four other people died. They didn’t stand a chance.

One thing that did come from last week’s tragic events was how the football community came together. It may have surprised non-football fans how everybody united in support of those affected, but I’m sure, like me, it didn’t surprise the average football fan.


There may have been much darkness in the game following the crash, but the reaction was heart-warming. It definitely showed, at times like this, that football has no colours. Many supporters around the country, including our own Kathy Blake on behalf of the Canaries Trust, visited the King Power Stadium and paid their respects by signing the book of condolence.

There are many reasons why Vichai was highly respected. For the people of Leicester he gave so much. Not just for the fans of Leicester City but for the community, donating money to the local hospital, University and much more. For the football club he made dreams come true for their supporters. I don’t think there were many fans up and down the country from other clubs who were envious of the success Leicester had – instead, I think most were happy knowing there is still hope for the rest of us outside of the so-called top six that we can still live the dream.

Apart from our success in 1992/93 where we finished third in the inaugural Premier League season, there were no real fairytale stories until Leicester had their magical season in 2015/16. During that season, I kept thinking back to our exploits of 1992/93 and believing Leicester would fall at the final hurdle. But I was wrong – and I was so glad I was.

Vichai was not your normal foreign football club owner. He connected with both the players and fans. Many stories being told by players and fans about Vichai have been heartwarming.

Some may disagree with me, but I can actually see a lot of similarities with our club and Delia & Co. Our board may not be as rich as the Srivaddhanaprabha family, but they are totally dedicated in trying to make us the best and also helping our community, especially with the superb community hub, The Nest.

There have been mistakes at times, as I’m sure I’ll be reminded, but we have always tried to keep up and get back to the promised land by coming up with different ideas and plans.

Also, I’ve witnessed our board interact with the fans with regular forums and meeting up with fan groups at away games. We’ve seen many times where our players have positively interacted with the board especially.

In this day and age with so many owners out of touch with the modern game, let alone players and fans, we really should be grateful for having Delia and Michael as owners. I’m sure fans of clubs like Newcastle and Ipswich don’t have the same relationship with their owners.

Let’s hope from the tragic events of last weekend, people around the country will see the community side of football is far more important than coming into football and treating the club as a PlayStation game.

RIP, Vichai

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