In the wake of record £104m losses West Ham have made it clear players must be sold – but David Sullivan, Daniel Kretinsky and the board have also signed a letter about providing the cash to keep the club afloat.
West Ham are in dire straits, on and off the pitch – and fans want to know how the club intend to get themselves out of a hole.
This is shocking! 😰 Relegation is going to be dire for West Ham…
What would YOU do to avoid this mess?
West Ham owner David Sullivan
Now it has emerged majority owner David Sullivan, mega rich co-owner Daniel Kretinsky and other Hammers chiefs have signed a letter about the cash needed to save the club after £104m losses.
On the pitch that is clear, the Hammers must win at least five of their remaining 10 games to have a chance of staying in the Premier League.
Off it, West Ham say player sales will be their first port of call after record losses – and that appears to be inevitable regardless of whether the club stay up or not.
Sullivan, Kretinsky and co sign letter to provide cash to save West Ham
When filing their accounts on Friday, the Hammers made it clear player sales will also be a necessity and their go-to option if the club is at risk of a financial rules breach.
FFP is being replaced by SCR rules, which West Ham previously said gives them more wiggle room.
MORE WEST HAM STORIES
But football finance expert Kieran Maguire says West Ham’s losses are the Premier League’s worst ever
So a breach of financial rules also seems ominous, especially if the Irons are demoted to the Championship.
David Sullivan during a West Ham game.
Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images
What if a summer fire sale cannot bridge the gap in West Ham’s accounts, then?
The club’s owners have outlined the plan if player sales fall short of covering the record £104m losses.
It is at that stage Sullivan, Kretinsky and the rest of the board will be forced to decide whether to dip into their own pockets.
Hammers explain what will happen if player sales don’t plug financial black hole
In its financial report for 2024/25 filed with Companies House, West Ham state that under its base forecast, within the going concern period, prior to mitigating actions, the Group predicts a liquidity shortfall this summer.
West Ham admit that ‘mitigating actions will be required for the Group to meet its liabilities as they fall due’.
Would you take relegation if it meant that David Sullivan would leave?! 🤔
Not a nice position to be in – but what would YOU choose if you had to?
David Sullivan takes in a West Ham match from the directors' box
Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images
The Hammers then state that should they fail to raise sufficient funds by – or prefer not to raise money through – player trading, then ‘additional funding from the shareholders would be required’.
The club further concedes this would be a necessity if West Ham suffer relegation.
West Ham have revealed Sullivan – who is worth over £1bn – and Kretinsky, whose latest net worth was said to be in excess of £13bn, and the board have signed a ‘letter of support’ pledging to provide the funds needed to keep West Ham afloat.
Interestingly, it makes clear that the funds may come from one shareholder individually rather than the ownership group as a collective.
“In the event other mitigating actions do not raise sufficient funding, certain of the investing owners have committed jointly, by signing a letter of support, to provide what the Board has concluded would be a sufficient level of financial support to allow the Group to continue to operate within its borrowing limits and meet its debts as they fall due for the going concern period under both a base and severe but plausible scenario,” West Ham state in their accounts.
“This support will be provided either by one certain shareholder individually or by a combination of certain shareholders.”
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best West Ham content each week direct to your mailbox