LEEDS was bedlam. The streets were thronged, the atmosphere was electric as the open-topped double-decker bus packed with jubilant footballers wound its way slowly through the city streets.
Tony Dorigo looked on loving it all as the Leeds players celebrated promotion after winning the Championship with 100 points and partied and waved to the fans below. Dorigo, now an expert summariser for Leeds United’s LUTV, had been on the bus the last time a Leeds team came home with a trophy.
That was 33 years previously when Howard Wilkinson’s team won the then First Division (the Premier League came into being the following year) in 1992.
“Last season was special because it doesn’t come around very often, does it?” said Dorigo, who was in Dublin on Tuesday for the launch of the Leeds United versus AC Milan pre-season friendly at the Aviva Stadium on August 9.
“The last time they had a parade in Leeds I was playing – that’s how long it’s taken to get back on a bus! So, enjoy those moments when you can.”
Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia. Dorigo had to make his own way in football. When he was 15 he wrote to the top 10 clubs in England asking for a trial. Aston Villa were the only one to respond, so the eager Aussie made his way to Birmingham where he impressed the scouts and was awarded a contract.
“It was all off my own bat,” he says with a smile.
“It was a long letter – four pages – and clearly I wrote a lot of rubbish but it worked! They must have seen something and thought: ‘Let’s give this kid a chance’.
“I don’t know if that could happen today with the scouting networks and all the systems they’ve got in place all around the world. Players get spotted a bit earlier but they didn’t spot me, they just took a chance and I was fortunate at 15 to be given that chance.
Tony Dorigo spent six seasons playing for Leeds and now works as an ambassador for the club. Photo by Shauna Clinton/Sportsfile (Shauna Clinton / SPORTSFILE/SPORTSFILE)
“Villa signed me, I was in the first team at 18, I was Player of the Year at 19… When you’re growing up, you’re dreaming of playing professional football and as an Australian kid, it’s a million miles away, isn’t it? It’s so far removed.
“So, scoring a winner at Wembley, playing in the World Cup (1990 for England)… It was just… It was a dream.”
An attacking full-back with a touch smooth as silk, searing pace and a wand of a left foot, Dorigo joined Leeds from Chelsea for the 1991-92 season. Leeds had been promoted in 1989-90 and finished fourth in their first season back in the top flight. They finished top of the pile in their second, the first of Dorigo’s six seasons at Elland Road.
In the modern era, Dorigo feels that kind of success is nigh on impossible without massive investment.
“The last team that kind of surprised everyone was Leicester, which was just a heck of a story,” says Dorigo, a Leeds United ambassador these days.
“They weren’t too long in the Premier League, they came up and the following season they won the title. But it won’t happen again because you look now, look at how much Ipswich spent last summer – over 100 million quid to finish, what was it, 15 points behind safety…
“I mean, that’s just crazy. For the Premier League I don’t think it’s a good look because you don’t want that, you don’t want that gap getting bigger and bigger (between the wealthiest clubs and the rest).
“But if any club can breach that gap, I think it’s us (Leeds), I really do, I think we’ve got a really good team off the pitch with the owners.
“They’re very determined to maximise the potential and I think the potential is huge. We’ve got huge support in Ireland, we’ve got huge support around the world, in Australia, in Scandinavia, in America…
“So, we have that ability, but you’ve got to do it on the pitch and I think we’ve got a lot of things going for us but it’s going to be a huge summer, making sure we get the signings right. We’re going to spend a lot of money but we’ve got to get it right.
“You’ve got to be looking at six or seven signings and it’s difficult because a lot of players are wanting to prove themselves in the Premier League but as a club, you need to be looking always for better players. You always need to improve because the gap is not getting any less, it’s getting bigger.
“We have a lot of players who have proven fantastic in the Championship but how many will get the chance to prove in the Premier League? I’m not so sure.
“It’s the nature of the beast. Every club’s going to be buying players to improve.”
Leeds United versus AC Milan kicks off at 3pm on Saturday, 9 August 2025. Tickets for the match go on pre-sale to Club fans on Tuesday, May 27 before going on public sale on Thursday, May 29 at 10am. Ticket prices start at €35 for adults and €20 for U16s (booking fees apply). Tickets can be purchased via Ticketmaster.