The 2015–16 season was Leeds United's sixth consecutive season in the Championship. Along with competing in the Championship, the club also participated in the FA Cup and League Cup.
Season summary
With Neil Redfearn having been sacked as manager in the summer, owner Massimo Cellino turned to Uwe Rösler, who had experienced some success with Brentford, but had been sacked as manager of then-Championship rivals Wigan Athletic in the middle of an ultimately unsuccessful relegation struggle the previous season. The summer also saw few signings of note being made, and a host of departures, including Billy Sharp, who had heavily underwhelmed by scoring just five goals in the previous season, and dropped down a division to return to former club Sheffield United.
As had become increasingly typical in recent years, Rösler had precious little time in charge of Leeds, and was sacked after winning just two of his first ten league matches (albeit five of them had ended in draws). He was replaced by Steve Evans, who had recently been sacked by Yorkshire rivals Rotherham United, and while the club's form initially remained unimpressive, results did eventually pick up. However, Leeds were too inconsistent to produce anything better than a season of mid-table mediocrity, with the only saving grace being that even this was better than most of their recent seasons. Among the few positives of the campaign were the form of newly-recruited New Zealander Chris Wood, who would prove Leeds' top scorer this year. Additionally, the relative lack of new signings and an injury crisis forced Evans to fall back on several youngsters, including Kalvin Phillips, who would become key figures in the side in the years ahead. Evans would not last long enough to see the fruits of this, however, as for the third season in succession, Leeds sacked their manager after the season ended.
Events
This is a list of the significant events to occur at the club during the 2014–15 season, presented in chronological order, starting on 2 May 2015 and ending on the final day of the club's final match in the 2015–16 season. This list does not include transfers or new contracts, which are listed in the transfers section below, or match results, which are in the results section.
May
7 May: Massimo Cellino has been granted Football League permission to return to the club's board, taking up the role as Leeds United chairman with immediate effect after passing the League's Owners and Directors Test. 11 May: Adam Pearson returns to the club as executive director, to assist Massimo Cellino. 12 May: The Financial Fair Play transfer embargo imposed upon the club in December is lifted for the 2015 summer transfer window, with no club now under no restrictions in relation to buying or selling players. 20 May: Uwe Rösler is named as the club's new head coach on a two-year deal.
June
3 June: Rob Kelly is named assistant head coach, penning a two-year deal. 9 June: Richard Hartis becomes the club's new goalkeeping coach. As a result of this move, Neil Sullivan returned to his previous role the Academy, coaching the Under-21s and U18s. 15 June: Martyn Glover joins the club from West Ham United as the new head of recruitment. The club also confirmed that Stuart Hayton had joined the previous week from Liverpool as the new club secretary. 16 June: The club announce a five-year deal with Italian sportswear giants Kappa to become the club's new kit provider from the 2015/16 season onwards. 24 June: The club reach a mutual agreement with Nicola Salerno for him to depart from his role as Sporting Director.
July
2 July: Julian Darby joins the backroom staff as a first-team coach. 13 July: Leeds re-purchase the catering and beverage rights for Elland Road and the Centenary Pavilion, ending a period where it had been outsourced after being sold in June 2012. 13 July: Global Autocare are announced as the club's official South Stand Sponsor and Vehicle Partner for the next three years in a record-breaking partnership. 16 July: Neil Redfearn resigns from academy position, claiming the club made his position "untenable".
August
4 August: Sol Bamba is named as the club's captain for the 2015/16 season. 21 August: The club announce a partnership with bookmakers CORAL, who will become the club's official betting and gaming partner, as well as sponsoring the North East Corner Stand of Elland Road.
September
4 September: Paul Hart returns as the club's new Head of Academy. 15 September: Adam Pearson departs from his role as executive director.