Leicester City Songs and Chants: From When You’re Smiling to Leicester ’Til I Die
When it comes to football fans, there is often a desire to show support for the team that they follow, which is usually done via the means of songs and chants. Obviously, this has the added benefit of being something that contributes to the atmosphere around the stadium in which the matches are played, which is the King Power Stadium when it comes to Leicester City. The Foxes have endured some incredible highs and some massive lows in recent years, which is reflected in the lyrics of some of the songs and chants that are brought out by the supporters during their various matches.
As you might imagine, some of the songs and chants that are used by fans to make noise are relevant and up to date, whilst others are much older and are specifically aimed at certain players or managers from the past. It often depends on the likes of what is happening on the pitch and whether the team needs a lift or they’re winning so comfortably that the supporters just get to cut loose and enjoy themselves. Whether you’ve supported the club for years or are reasonably new to following them, knowing the sorts of things that Leicester fans will sing at the match is useful.
It goes without saying that this list is far from exhaustive. If you think you’ve heard the supporters sing or chant something during a match and it isn’t on this list, you will be right. That is obviously especially going to be the case if it is a recent thing that you’ve heard that is reacting to something that has happened not long ago. Even so, this will give you a sense of the kinds of things that you will be likely to hear or even be able to join in with when watching the Foxes play football.
When You’re Smiling
It would be untrue to suggest that Leicester City fans are the only group of supporters who sing When You’re Smiling, given the fact that it is often used by different sets of fans who will sometimes change or alter the lyrics in order to make it more personal to them. That being said, it isn’t exactly out of the realms of the possible that it is the Foxes with whom the song is most closely associated, which is why it is considered something of an unofficial anthem for the football club. The popular song dates back to the late 1920s, which is when it was first published.
In some ways, the lyrics tell you all about what it’s like to support a football team, getting that sense that everyone else is also smiling when you are. Here is how said lyrics go:
When you’re smiling,
(When you’re smiling),
The whole world smiles with you.
When you’re laughing,
(When you’re laughing),
The sun comes shining through.
But when you’re sighing,
you bring on the rain,
So stop sighing,
Be happy again!
‘Cos when you’re smiling,
(When you’re smiling),
The whole world smiles with you.
The whole world smiles with you.
The Leicester!
(Clap x 3)
The Leicester!
(Clap x 3)
The Leicester!
(Clap x 3)
Jamie Vardy Song
Perhaps no player in the history of Leicester City Football Club had as much of an impact on the team as Jamie Vardy. The striker didn’t single-handedly win the Foxes the title at the end of the 2015-2016 season, but without his goals it’s unlikely that they would have lifted the Premier League trophy. He also showed his loyalty to the Foxes, staying at the King Power even after Arsenal showed an interest in him. That is immortalised in a song that still gets an airing, even though the player is no longer at the club. Here’s how it goes:
Jamie Vardy’s magic,
He wears a magic hat.
He could’ve gone to Arsenal,
But he didn’t fancy that.
He walked right up to Wenger,
He said ‘Chat shit get banged’.
I wanna stay at Leicester,
The best team in the land!
Paris to Berlin
Leicester City’s place in the East Midlands puts them in direct opposition to Nottingham Forest, so it is hardly all that surprising that the Foxes fans have one or two songs that make reference to their more successful neighbours. They don’t tend to pull their punches either, with Forest being the team that they hate more than any other. Paris to Berlin is a song that you might recognise the tune of, but the lyrics have been changed and altered by Leicester supporters in order to take aim at their rivals. Here’s how it goes:
From Paris to Berlin,
In every disco we’ve been in,
We’re singing f*ck Nottingham!
f*ck Nottingham!
‘Cos we all know that it’s true,
That the East Midlands is blue.
We’re singing f*ck Nottingham!
f*ck Nottingham!
Wings of an Eagle
Another song that is about Nottingham Forest is Wings of an Eagle, which is used by supporters of different clubs, only with the lyrics changed in order to make it about their own mortal enemy, presuming that it isn’t also Nottingham Forest. It isn’t a subtle song, but that can often lend itself to it being sung with volume and gusto as everyone can join in. Here are the lyrics:
If I had the wings of an eagle,
If I had the arse of a crow,
I’d fly over Nottingham Forest
And shit on the bastards below!
(Below!)
Shit on,
Shit on,
Shit on the bastards below,
Below!
Red Side of the Trent
Given the fact that Notts County are the closest team to Nottingham Forest and Coventry City might be a tad closer to Leicester City, you’d think that the two teams would have other things to worry about. Yet it is because of the success that the two teams have enjoyed over the years that they have such enmity towards one another. That is perhaps best summed up by the Red Side of the Trent chant, which makes a reference to the River Trent, upon which you will find the city of Nottingham itself.
Here are the words to the chant, which is sung to the tune of Always Look on the Bright Side of Life:
Always shit on the red side of the Trent,
Da da da da da da!
Always shit on the red side of the Trent,
Da da da da da da!
Singing Loud
More often than not, supporters will look to sing songs that offer support for their team more than criticism of others. That is where Singing Loud comes in, being a song about the club itself and the manner in which the supporters show a love for the ‘blue and white’. Here’s what it goes like:
We’re singing loud for you Leicester,
Our only love since 1884.
Oh we’ll always fight
For the Blue and White
And the city that sits upon the Soar!
When Skies Are Grey
Another song that is more about showing support for Leicester than it is about anything else is When Skies Are Grey, which is another of those that other songs might well sing their own version of, but obviously putting their own twist in place. It is a tune that the vast majority of people will know, having been around for decades, with Leicester City’s version going as follows:
You are my Leicester,
My only Leicester,
You make me happy,
When skies are grey.
You’ll never notice,
How much I love you,
So please don’t take
My Leicester away!
Na na na na na!
Ooh, ooh!
Hark Now Hear
There are some songs that football supporters only bring out at certain times, with Hark Now Hear being just such an example. It is one of the songs that is part of the King Power songbook around Christmas time, getting a decent airing once December hits. Here are the lyrics:
Hark now hear
The Leicester sing,
The Chelsea ran away
And we will fight
Forever more
Because of Boxing Day!
Leicester ’Til I Die
This is one of those songs that is sung by numerous different football clubs up and down the country, with the words changed to represent the side that they actually support. Although it isn’t unique, it still presents the opportunity to create a good atmosphere, thanks to the fact that its simplicity means that pretty much everyone can join in. Here’s what they chant:
Leicester ‘til I die,
I’m Leicester ‘til I die.
I know I am,
I’m sure I am,
I’m Leicester ‘til I die!
(Repeat)