There’s a lot of dissatisfaction at West Ham at the moment, especially when it comes to the performances so early on in Julen Lopetegui‘s tenure.
Just one win from the Spaniard’s opening seven games in all competitions has led to questions over whether he’s the right man to take the club forward.
But there also appears to be dissatisfaction higher up at the club, with boardroom level issues being touted, via Football Insider.
Speaking to FI’s Insider Track podcast, former Everton CEO Kieth Wyness hinted that he’s heard that there are some issues among the most senior people at West Ham.
“I have a feeling there is a bit of rot starting to set in behind the scenes at the London Stadium,” Wyness said.
“I’m hearing a lot of things from the club about dissatisfaction in the boardroom. The club are looking to bring in new investors.”
That last point isn’t exactly a secret, with reports earlier this summer suggesting NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal was weighing up an opportunity to invest in the Hammers. That came after it was revealed last year that Vanessa Gold, David Gold’s daughter, was planning to sell up to 10% of the family’s 25.1% shareholding.
David Sullivan remains the club’s major shareholder with 38.8%, while Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky bought a 27% share in the club back in November 2021.
It’s not quite clear what the current issues are behind the scenes, especially given the success the club has enjoyed over the past four years, but it does point towards more change happening at the club in future, following a summer of transition in the playing squad, as a new manager came in and around £150m was spent on nine new first-team players.
Major West Ham shareholder getting richer by the year
Despite fans passionately calling for David Sullivan to sell the club for the best part of a decade, there is no indication that a full takeover is lined up at this point, although Wyness’ comments will no doubt have many fans hoping this is the beginning of the end of the Sullivan era in east London.
This also comes as Kretinsky’s net worth over the last year sky rocketed, with him going from 47th to 33rd on the Sunday Times’ Rich List this year. His net worth is now estimated to be just under £13billion, which makes him wealthier than the owners of both Man City and Aston Villa.
In contrast, Sullivan is ‘only’ believed to be worth a little over £1bn.
However, with Kretinsky getting richer by the year, only Newcastle and Man United have richer owners than the Hammers in the Premier League, according to HammersNews.
After Kretinsky bought his stake in the club, there was some speculation that this was the Czech’s first move before eventually buying for of the club and eventually becoming the majority shareholder.
There’s no indication that this is about to happen but given his ever increasing net worth, it’s not like he can’t afford it, is it?
