Eriksson was appointed manager of Leicester City on 3 October 2010, as the Foxes sat in the relegation zone of the Championship. His first league game in charge resulted in a 1–1 draw against Hull City, managed by Nigel Pearson who had managed Leicester for the previous two seasons. This was quickly followed by Leicester's first victory under Eriksson, beating Leeds United 2–1 at Elland Road.

In December 2010, it was announced that Eriksson denied talks into becoming the new manager for Blackburn Rovers, following the exit of Sam Allardyce, stating he was happy managing Leicester