Leicester City squad attend Thailand funeral of club chairman killed in helicopter crash

Squad flies out to Bangkok hours after emotional win over Cardiff to pay respects to late club owner

Leicester City players have travelled to Thailand to pay tribute to the club’s late chairman after he died in a helicopter crash outside their stadium.

Foxes manager Claude Puel led his team as they paid respects to Thai billionaire Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who was killed in the accident alongside four other people on 27 October.

His funeral began on Saturday, while other ceremonies to mark his life are scheduled to take place in his home nation until 9 November.

Forward Jamie Vardy (back) pays his respects during Vichai's funeral (EPA)

Leicester players arrived in Thailand on Sunday after travelling to Bangkok just hours after their Premier League fixture with Cardiff City.

The game, the first since Vichai’s death, saw Leicester win an emotionally-charged match 1-0 thanks to a goal from winger Demarai Gray.

English pair Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire, Japanese forward Shinji Okazaki and Danish goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel were among those from the club to attend the ceremony at the Wat Thepsirin temple.

Shinji Okazaki embraces a woman during the service in Bangkok (EPA)

Players dressed in black suits and black ties could be seen bowing their heads in respect to Vichai and embracing members of the club owner’s family.

The businessman’s royal-sponsored funeral, a Buddhist service attended by top government officials and other public figures, had begun at the temple on Saturday.

A devout Buddhist, Vichai had regularly had monks bless his team’s King Power Stadium for good luck.

The billionaire purchased Leicester City in 2010 while the club was still in The Championship, English football’s second tier.

He then oversaw one of the greatest underdog stories in the history of sport when the 5,000-1 outsiders went on to win the Premier League title in 2016.

Leicester manager Claude Puel and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel were among those in attendance (EPA)

The retail entrepreneur was known in the business world for growing Thailand's massive King Power duty-free chain from a single store he opened in downtown Bangkok in 1989.

Today the King Power empire is worth £3.8bn, according to Forbes, a fortune that made Vichai the fifth-richest person in Thailand at the time of his death.

He is survived by his wife, Aimon Srivaddhanaprabha, and their four children.

Additional reporting by agencies