Coventry and Leicester's traditional rivals have historically been considered to be
Aston Villa and
Nottingham Forest respectively. However, the fixture became increasingly significant between 2001 and 2011 with both clubs' traditional rivals often being in a different league. According to a survey by The Football Pools published in 2008, this fixture is the 26th fiercest rivalry in English football. In the 2011–12 season Coventry were relegated to League One, meaning the M69 derby would not take place for the first time in eight seasons. A period of turmoil followed for The Sky Blues under their controversial former owners, London based hedge fund SISU Capital as they left their home at the Coventry Building Society Arena twice to play home games in Northampton and Birmingham respectively as well as suffering a further relegation to League Two in 2017. Whilst Coventry struggled to even survive as a club, Leicester flourished and entered a golden period in their history. After winning promotion back to the Premier League in 2014, The Foxes shocked the entire footballing world by winning the
2015–16 Premier League and would go on to add another trophy to their collection after a 1-0 victory against
Chelsea in the
2021 FA Cup final. Coventry's defeat to
Luton Town in the
2023 EFL Championship play-off final coupled with Leicester's relegation from the
2022–23 Premier League the very next day ensured that after an 11-year hiatus the M69 derby would return in the 2023–24 season. The two sides played each other on the opening weekend of the
2023–24 EFL Championship, Coventry had looked set for a first ever win at the King Power Stadium before two late goals from
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall gave The Foxes a 2-1 win. In January 2024 Coventry got their first win in the fixture since 2008 as they won a fiery encounter at The Coventry Building Society Arena. Two goals from
Callum O'Hare either side of a
Milan van Ewijk strike secured a comeback win after Dewsbury-Hall had put Leicester ahead. The derby was not played in the 2024–25 season as Leicester won immediate promotion back to the Premier League under the stewardship of
Enzo Maresca who led them to the Championship title, however it returned again in 2025–26 as the Foxes latest foray into the top flight lasted a solitary season and they were again relegated. On 21 April 2026, Coventry secured their first
second tier title since 1967 in a 5–1 win over
Portsmouth. At nearly the exact same time, Leicester was assured of relegation to League One following a 2–2 draw with
Hull City. == Crowd trouble ==