Leicester Tigers 10/1 to win the Premiership following Michael Cheika appointment

Leicester Tigers have pulled off a major coup with the announcement that former Australia boss Michael Cheika will become their new coach.

Cheika has been without a coaching role since the end of the 2023 World Cup, when he left his position as Argentina head coach after 12 months in the job.

Now Leicester have persuaded him to move to Welford Road, as they seek success both domestically and in Europe.

Premiership 2024/25 Outright odds

Tigers hope for quick recovery

An eighth-placed finish in last season’s Gallagher Premiership led to the departure of Dan McKellar after just a year in charge.

Leicester, who are 10/1 to win the 2024/25 Premiership Grand Final, won just nine of their 18 league games last term and eventually finished 15 points behind table-toppers and East Midlands rivals Northampton.

This poor showing came just two seasons after they had been crowned champions and just one league title in the last 11 years is clearly not good enough for a club of their stature.

McKellar will be replaced by another Aussie in Cheika, who led the Pumas to fourth place at the World Cup and has had experience around the globe.

As well as coaching at international level, the 57-year-old has also had stints with clubs in France, Ireland and Australia, with Stade Francais, Leinster and the Waratahs respectively.

Cheika has also had experience of coaching in Rugby League, having had a spell in charge as head coach of the Lebanon national team and was also an assistant coach in the NRL.

The man from Sydney was named World Rugby Coach of the Year in 2015 and won the Super Rugby title with the Waratahs in 2014.

Cheika appointment to have an impact

When you consider Cheika said he “didn’t have the desire to coach in the Premiership” until the Leicester offer, this appointment will certainly make the rugby world sit up and take notice.

Tigers’ chief executive Andrea Pinchen insisted that the Australian is the “right person to take the club back to where it should be”.

It’s hard to argue with that claim when you consider Cheika’s CV and what he has achieved in the game.

A European Cup winner whilst in charge of Leinster, he has the knowledge and experience across both codes to bring success to Welford Road.

It’s a reset for Leicester, who have been through seven coaches in the last eight years and recently lost scrum coach Dan Palmer.

Earlier this month, fellow Australian Peter Hewat joined the Tigers as attack and backs coach and Cheika is likely to want to add more new faces to his coaching team.

He also has a strong working relationship with the Leicester captain, Julian Montoya, who he knows well from his time in charge of Argentina’s national team.

Cheika will have three months to prepare for the start of the new Premiership campaign, with the season set to get underway in the third week of September.