Leicester City booed off as Burton win 2-1 and Oliver Skipp sees red at the King Power

Matthew Dennis put Burton ahead after five minutes and Kgaogelo Chauke doubled the lead in the 25th, before Oliver Skipp’s straight red card made Leicester’s task even harder. Wes Burns scored three minutes before half-time to restore hope, but Gary Bowyer’s visitors defended the second half with enough discipline to protect the lead. Sky Sports described a frustrated home crowd and a memorable result for Burton.

At a glance

• Sky Sports: Burton Albion beat Leicester City 2-1 at the King Power Stadium on 22 August 2026 in Sky Bet League One.
• Sky Sports: Matthew Dennis opened the scoring after five minutes and Kgaogelo Chauke made it 2-0 in the 25th minute.
• Sky Sports: Oliver Skipp received a straight red card in the 29th minute for a foul on Curtis Tilt.
• Sky Sports: Wes Burns pulled one back in the 42nd minute from Will Alves’s cross, but Leicester could not find an equaliser.
• Leicester City: The result left Russell Martin’s side still seeking their first League One win after an opening-day draw at Notts County.

Burton attacked Leicester’s early uncertainty

The visitors did not spend the opening phase waiting to see what Leicester would do. Kyran Lofthouse’s through ball released Dennis for the first goal after five minutes, and Burton continued to play forward when opportunities appeared. Chauke’s second came after he reacted quickest to a deflection from another Lofthouse effort. The two goals exposed Leicester’s difficulty controlling transitions and second balls, areas that become especially costly against a side prepared to attack directly.

The red card turned a poor start into a tactical emergency

Skipp’s dismissal in the 29th minute removed Leicester’s margin for error. Already two goals behind, Martin had to find a shape that could chase the game without leaving Burton repeated counter-attacking chances. The red also changed the crowd’s mood because it followed rather than caused the damage: Leicester had already been second best when they went down to 10. That sequence made the performance feel less like misfortune and more like a failure to impose themselves from the start.

Burns gave Leicester a route back

The home side did produce a response. Will Alves crossed to the far post in the 42nd minute and Burns finished for his first Leicester goal. Scoring before half-time prevented the atmosphere from becoming completely hostile and gave Martin a realistic second-half objective: create one clear chance rather than recover two goals. Leicester pushed Burton deeper after the interval, with Harry Souttar and substitutes threatening, but the quality of the final action was not consistent enough to force parity.

Bowyer’s plan survived the pressure phase

Burton’s victory was not just the product of Leicester mistakes. Once ahead, Bowyer’s team accepted that the second half would require compact defending, clearances and disciplined positioning. Sky Sports praised the visitors’ defensive grit as they managed late pressure. That matters for a League One side away at a former Premier League club: the tactical challenge is often to recognise when an open game has served its purpose and when the priority should switch to protecting territory and limiting high-value chances.

Martin’s home league start now carries pressure

Leicester began their league campaign with a 1-1 draw at Notts County, so the Burton defeat leaves a return of one point from the first two matches. That is far too small a sample to define a season, but relegation to League One has already reset expectations around promotion and authority. Being booed off in the first home league fixture tells Martin that patience will not be unlimited. His immediate task is to make Leicester look more secure without draining the attacking ambition needed to dominate this division.

What happens next

Leicester travel to Ipswich in the Carabao Cup before returning to league action against MK Dons, while Burton can build on a result that showed both attacking sharpness and resilience. For Martin, the review will centre on the opening 30 minutes: why Leicester were so easy to play through, how discipline slipped and which changes can stop another match becoming an exercise in recovery.