The Foxes fell into the third tier of English football for the first time in their history after a turbulent campaign.

They paid agents £1,630,287 between July 2007 and June 2008 as players such as Steve Howard and DJ Campbell were brought into the Walkers Stadium.

Stoke paid out £1,316,900 as the next highest spenders, but that outlay will seem minuscule given the riches they will receive as a Premier League club this season.

For Leicester, however, it was another high expense in the club's disappointing campaign which has condemned them to life in League One.

The Football League revealed on Thursday that fees paid to agents rose for the third year in succession and totalled £11.1million last season.

Despite Luton, Bournemouth and Rotherham all encountering financial difficulties which have resulted in them starting the season on a minus-points tally, Football League chairman Lord Brian Mawhinney painted a positive picture of the League's financial health.

Mawhinney said clubs are learning to be more prudent and that agents' fees are reducing as a percentage of transfer spending.

League clubs spent £81.5million on transfers last season - a staggering increase on the £45.8million spent during the year previously - but money paid to agents as a percentage of overall transfer spending is falling.

Last season just 14% of clubs' transfer spending went on agents - whereas it was 53% in 2004-05.

Mawhinney said: "In the last 12 months we've seen a resurgent transfer market with clubs spending significantly greater sums on players.

"It is encouraging that this has not been coupled with a similar increase in payments to agents.

"Instead, these are now at their lowest levels since we began publishing these figures four seasons ago.

"Football League clubs continue to make genuine strides towards putting their economic affairs in order.

"We have led the way in this regard, though more remains to be done."