Leicester start in League One at Notts County - analysis & opening weekend fixtures

Leicester City will start their League One season at promoted Notts County, while Bromley's first-ever match in the division will be at Barnsley.

Back-to-back relegations for Leicester have resulted in the 2016 Premier League title winners dropping into the third tier for only the second time in their 142-year history, 17 years on from their only previous campaign in the division.

In stark contrast, League Two title winners Bromley are a side that has previously spent 132 of its 134-year existence in non-league football.

Four divisions and 106 places separated Bromley and Leicester 10 years ago - with the Ravens finishing 14th in the National League when Leicester were being crowned Premier League champions - but they will find themselves on equal footing when they meet for the first time at the 6,000-capacity Hayes Lane on Tuesday, 20 October.

Sheffield Wednesday, relegated as the Championship's bottom side after being hit with points penalties and spending almost the entire campaign in administration, take on Leyton Orient on a packed opening-day schedule on Saturday, 15 August.

Newly appointed Oxford United boss Aaron Ramsey has learned, less than 48 hours after being put in charge of the U's, that they will host last season's League Two runners-up MK Dons on their return to League One after coming down alongside Sheffield Wednesday and Leicester last season.

Meanwhile, promoted Cambridge United host Wigan Athletic and last season's beaten play-off finalists Stockport County travel to Plymouth Argyle.

Notts County v Leicester City (12:30 BST)

Oxford United v MK Dons (12:30 BST)

Reading v Luton Town (12:30 BST)

Barnsley v Bromley

Blackpool v Wycombe Wanderers

Bradford City v Peterborough United

Burton Albion v Stevenage

Cambridge United v Wigan Athletic

Huddersfield Town v AFC Wimbledon

Leyton Orient v Sheffield Wednesday

Mansfield Town v Doncaster Rovers

Plymouth Argyle v Stockport County

All matches take place on Saturday, 15 August and kick-off at 15:00 BST unless stated

Clubs with Premier League pedigree dropping into League One are nothing new, but no decline matches that of Leicester.

It was only a decade ago that the Foxes were celebrating their famous 5,000-1 Premier League success.

Five years ago they lifted the FA Cup, and it is just four years on from their first-ever European semi-final when they lost to Roma in the Europa Conference League.

Three relegations in four seasons, having initially yo-yoed between the Premier League and Championship before suffering back-to-back drops, have plunged the club to arguably the lowest point in its history.

There will once again be financial pressures on the Foxes, who have been hit with a points penalty for historical overspending last season.

They also need to rebuild a side that has badly underperformed in recent years despite being stacked with talented players such as Ghana's Abdul Fatawu, Denmark's Jannik Vestergaard, former England midfielder Harry Winks and Belgium's Wout Faes, who remains on the Foxes' books after seeing out last season with Monaco on loan.

Russell Martin, who guided Southampton to Premier League promotion just two years ago, has been appointed to lead Leicester's on-field revival.

The job in the third tier also represents a chance for the 40-year-old to resurrect his managerial reputation after a disastrous 17-game spell in charge of Scottish side Rangers last season.

There is also a theme of resurrection about Sheffield Wednesday's return to League One after three seasons, with the club now owned by US consortium Arise Capital Partners.

With Leicester and Sheffield Wednesday in League One, it once again means that more than a third of the clubs in the division have played in the Premier League, with the others being Bradford City, Blackpool, Barnsley, Huddersfield Town, Luton Town, Reading and Wigan Athletic.

Luton, a side that suffered back-to-back relegations after spending the 2023-24 season in the top flight, fell one place and one point short of the play-off spots under Jack Wilshere last season.

The former England and Arsenal midfielder, who guided the Hatters to EFL Trophy glory in his first season in management, had been linked with a possible move to Leicester earlier in the summer, but opted to stay at Kenilworth Road.

MK Dons' promotion back to League One after a three-year absence has them back in the same division as AFC Wimbledon - a club that they share a unique rivalry with.

When 1988 FA Cup winners Wimbledon relocated to Milton Keynes more than two decades ago, the MK Dons name was forged.

And in the vacuum left where the Dons used to be in south-west London, phoenix club AFC Wimbledon was formed in protest at having the side taken away in such a fashion.

It was not until 2012 that the two clubs first met in the FA Cup, but they have both bounced around in League One and Two in recent seasons.

Despite losing nine and winning just one of their final 11 matches last season, AFC Wimbledon preserved its place in the third tier.

MK Dons finished second in League Two to come up automatically under boss Paul Warne - a head coach who has overseen four previous promotions out of League One with Rotherham United and Derby County.

AFC Wimbledon host MK Dons on Saturday, 19 September, with the reverse fixture coming on the weekend of 17 April.

Elsewhere, Notts County's promotion to League One via the play-offs after 11 years away means their Nottinghamshire derby against Mansfield Town is back on the schedule. The Stags host the first meeting between the two sides on Saturday, 31 October.

The Cambridgeshire derby between Peterborough United and Cambridge United also returns after a one-year hiatus - with Posh first hosting their regional rivals on Saturday, 28 November.