Leicester Win the EPL???

The highest Leicester had finished in its first 132 years was second place — in 1929. Just staying in the top flight or securing promotion from the second tier has been the priority for much of the history of this modest club, based in a central England city with a population of barely 300,000. The Foxes have taken only two years to become champions after a decade stranded in the second or third tiers.

In an era when elite clubs are getting wealthier and the Premier League trophy hadn't left Manchester or London in 20 years, an outsider breaking the established order seemed unthinkable without the heavy spending that fueled Blackburn Rovers' 1995 title.

Encapsulating just how remarkable this season has been, Leicester dethroned a Chelsea side currently 29 points behind in ninth place. The last first-time champion of England was Nottingham Forest in 1978, long before soccer's financial gulfs widened. Based on spending, Leicester's accomplishment is unfathomable: Record 20-time champion Manchester United, despite its starting lineup costing more than ten times to assemble at around 330 million pounds, is fifth.

Putting Leicester's feat into further perspective, Liverpool won a then-record 18th English title in 1990 to confirm its status as the country's dominant force. But Leicester has now achieved what Liverpool has failed to do in 26 years since.

There's a sense of entitlement at clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea and United, who believe they should be regular title winners and whose supporters cry out when they fall short.

By comparison, the pure elation Leicester fans have radiated has been infectious and refreshing, singing since March: "We're gonna win the league" or breaking out into sarcastic renditions of "we are staying up" in relation to last season's relegation dogfight.

Leicester improbably opened the new season with an unbeaten run of six games before losing to Arsenal. That proved to be a blip, with the Foxes embarking on another 10 game streak without defeat which saw them go top in November.

Fueling the surge was Vardy, who scored in a record 11 consecutive Premier League games. This is a 28-year-old striker Leicester spotted at non-league Fleetwood Town in 2012 and who had once been earning only 30 pounds ($45) while combining playing on uneven pitches in front of a few hundred fans with manual labor.

Even as goals from Vardy and Riyad Mahrez — who cost less than £500,000 — made Leicester an implausible title contender, pundits predicted the team would soon drop off. But the implosion never came.

Ranieri restricted himself in public to targeting 40 points, the mark usually required to avoid relegation. That was reached on Jan. 2 with almost half of the season remaining. But Arsenal was top at the time and the FA Cup holders looked well-placed to end its 12-year title drought.

And yet it was Arsenal which collapsed as Leicester reclaimed top spot and fought off Tottenham.