WHUFC.com
Government and the Mayor of London have backed the OPLC's recommendation
over the future of the Olympic Stadium
03.03.2011
West Ham United and Newham Council's joint-bid to take over the Olympic
Stadium after the 2012 Games has been formally ratified. The Government and
Mayor of London confirmed on Thursday morning the Olympic Park Legacy
Company's decision to recommend the club as the preferred bidders for the
Olympic Stadium. West Ham United Vice-Chairman Karren Brady said: "I am
pleased and proud the Mayor of London and Government have today endorsed the
Olympic Park Legacy Company's recommendation that West Ham United and Newham
Council be preferred bidder for the Olympic Stadium.
"I am grateful for their support and the clear recognition of the strengths
of a financially strong, community-based bid that will do much for the
regeneration of east London. At this time, I must also personally thank
Baroness Ford and Andy Altman of the OPLC for the thorough and professional
way they have handled this entire process. I look forward to working with
them in the future and making their vision a reality. "At West Ham, we have
been entrusted with a great responsibility and the OPLC's unanimous backing
will only inspire us further to make good on our legacy promises. In many
ways, the hard work starts now. The starting gun has been fired and we are
off and running. This will be an Olympic Stadium to make everyone proud, a
multi-sports, multi-event arena that will be both a spectacular local and
global attraction. We will not let anyone down."
Mayor of Newham Sir Robin Wales said: "We are pleased the Government has
recognised the strength of our bid, which is focused on guaranteeing
community benefits for our residents and contributing to a meaningful legacy
for east London, the capital and the country. "We are working with our
partners West Ham United on the commercial aspects of our joint bid and look
forward to a handover of contracts later this year with the Olympic Park
Legacy Company."
In welcoming today's developments, the OPLC said: "We are pleased that the
Mayor and Ministers have approved our recommendation. We look forward to
working with the preferred bidder, West Ham United and the London Borough of
Newham, in order to bring the future of the Stadium to a financial close."
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Spence loaned to Bristol City
WHUFC.com
Hammers centre-back Jordan Spence has headed out on loan to Bristol City for
a month
03.03.2011
Jordan Spence has been loaned to nPower Championship side Bristol City. The
Hammers reserve-team captain will spend a month at Ashton Gate. It is his
first loan spell this season, having played eleven games in the 2009/10
campaign at Scunthorpe United. His Hammers debut came as a late substitute
on the final day of last season against Manchester City. Still only 20,
Spence has yet to build on that senior experience, although he continues to
lead the reserve side - most recently in the 3-2 home win against Arsenal on
Tuesday night. Spence is an England youth international, having captained
the Young Lions at every age group up to the Under-20s. Bristol City are
17th in the 24-team Championship, and moved for Spence after captain Louis
Carey was ruled out for six weeks following a head injury suffered in last
Saturday's 2-0 win against Scunthorpe. Spence's debut could come this
Saturday at home to Coventry City. He becomes the third young Hammer out on
loan, with Frank Nouble at Barnsley and Matthew Fry with Charlton Athletic.
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Saturday support key for Tomkins
WHUFC.com
Still only 21, James Tomkins knows how much the fans will be needed against
Stoke City
03.03.2011
James Tomkins has spoken of the importance of fan power to the Hammers
chances of overcoming Stoke City this Saturday. The central defender has
been a real success story this season and returned to the starting lineup
last week to imperious impact alongside Matthew Upson. Tomkins edged a
competitive battle with Liverpool forward Luis Suarez and said the strong
backing from the supporters more than helped him in his Boleyn
battle."Hopefully our fans - who have been great, will back us again and get
behind us like they did last Sunday and we can get another important win
towards staying up. The Liverpool win has definitely kept momentum up. If we
can now back this result up with another one again Stoke, then we can keep
that run going.
"The Liverpool win gave the team a huge boost. The way we have been playing
especially in the last few games - the second half at West Brom, the cup
game against Burnley and now against Liverpool, the way we can perform, on
our day we know that we can beat most teams playing like that. It was a good
performance and obviously an important win."
Tomkins has relished his partnership with Upson this season, and both men
rightly received rave reviews for their rearguard action against the Reds.
"It was good, you know we have had many games together this season and I
always enjoy playing alongside him. "He is a good, experienced player and we
play together well. It was not just a good game for us, but for all the back
four, the whole team. We have got a great team spirit."
The defence will need to be at their best against the Potters this weekend,
with the likes of John Carew and Kenwyne Jones set to match up directly
against Tomkins and Upson from the kick-off. Every single set-piece and ball
pumped into the Hammers penalty area will require the utmost concentration.
"It will be a much more physical game, physical battle but the most
important thing is we back up these last three results with another win.
Another three points is all that matters and it can take us up the league
table even more. "I feel I am becoming more experienced and learning more in
the game all the time, learning how to deal with more physical players and
other types of players more and more. So that is all part of it and you have
to deal with all kinds and I am just enjoying my football doing that."
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West Ham approved as London 2012 Olympic Stadium tenant
BBC.co.uk
West Ham United's move to the Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Games has been
approved. The club was selected as the preferred tenant for the east London
venue by the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) over a rival bid from
Tottenham Hotspur. That decision has been ratified by the government and the
mayor of London. Meanwhile Leyton Orient, the nearest club to the stadium,
has threatened to take legal action as it claims the move would threaten its
existence. Orient chairman Barry Hearn said last month he had written to
Prime Minister David Cameron and London Mayor Boris Johnson asking them to
look into the decision. He urged them not to "rubber-stamp it at this
stage".
The Premier League decided to give its blessing to a football club moving
into the stadium but had no preference between West Ham and Spurs. A league
spokesman said: "Full consideration was given to a letter written by Barry
Hearn to the Premier League prior to the board meeting at which the decision
was taken. "In the letter Mr Hearn accepted either Tottenham Hotspur or West
Ham United would inevitably move into the Olympic Stadium while outlining
his preference for Tottenham Hotspur. "It is regrettable Mr Hearn is now
claiming that Leyton Orient had no input. There is absolutely no question of
the board's decision being reviewed."
Junior communities minister Bob Neill described the decision as a
"milestone" and said the OPLC would begin discussing the terms of the lease
with West Ham. Mr Johnson claimed the decision to allow West Ham to take
over the Olympic Stadium would prevent the venue from becoming "a dust bowl"
staging occasional athletics events. "I am confident that West Ham will
provide a secure future for the stadium which also sees its iconic design
for the London Games retained for future generations to admire," he said. Mr
Johnson also promised Tottenham that he would do all he could to help them
move to a new stadium.
West Ham's bid for the £537m venue was judged to provide the best legacy for
the stadium. Spurs' plan was widely criticised because it would have
involved removing the running track and replacing part of the stadium. The
club intended to pay for an expansion of the athletics facility in Crystal
Palace, rather than keeping a legacy for the sport in Stratford. West Ham,
currently in the Premier League relegation zone, will keep athletics in east
London and leave the running track untouched. UKA chairman Ed Warner
welcomed the decision and thanked the OPLC for its commitment to an
athletics legacy.
He said: "The process undertaken by the OPLC was robust and thorough and
this announcement today is testament to that."
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Bristol City sign up West Ham's Jordan Spence on loan
BBC.co.uk
Bristol City have signed West Ham right-back and England Under-19
international Jordan Spence on loan. The 20-year-old has made one substitute
appearance for the Hammers but has had first-team experience on loan at both
Leyton Orient and Scunthorpe. City hope to extend the initial one-month deal
to the end of the season. In the absence of captain Louis Carey, who has
been filling in at right-back in recent games, Spence is set to start at
Coventry on Saturday. "I don't think anywhere's easy to go but I'm prepared
for it and will give it a go," Spence told BBC Radio Bristol after training
with the City squad for the first time on Thursday morning. "I was hoping
somebody would come in for me so I've been ready and preparing myself
physically and mentally for the opportunity. "I'm here to play and do well
for Bristol City first and foremost, and then the experience and where that
takes me will be a positive thing as well. "I operate at right-back or
centre-half. I'd like to say I'm a composed defender, I've obviously been
brought up playing football at West Ham, and one of my key attributes is
that I'm quite quick, I'm decent across the grass and I look to get forward
when the time's right."
Carey, 34, fractured his skull in the home win against Scunthorpe on
Saturday and the injury is worse than was first thought with the skipper
potentially missing for the rest of the season. "Louis will be out for at
least six to eight weeks," manager Keith Millen told BBC Radio Bristol.
"It's an injury we can't take any chances on and we have to respect what the
specialists are saying. It's going to be a long time before he's allowed any
contact in football, so we're all disappointed. "It leaves us short but
we've kept an eye on Jordan for a while now. "We watched him in West Ham's
reserves, he has Championship experience playing 11 games for Scunthorpe and
we've done our homework, speaking to a lot of people. "He's a great lad and
he wants to learn and improve his game. He's a good athlete, quick and
strong, and a good size and is a good addition to the squad. He looked
decent in training."
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PL dismiss Hearn complaint
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 3rd March 2011
By: Staff Writer
Barry Hearn's attempts to prevent West Ham United moving into the Olympic
Stadium have hit a buffer after the Premier League revealed he had
previously written to them expressing support for Tottenham's failed bid.
Hearn - whose club are situated in the London Borough of Waltham Forest -
recently stated that he would be taking legal action as a result of the
OPLC's decision to give preferred bidder status to West Ham; a decision that
was rubber-stamped earlier today by Boris Johnson and the Government. The
Orient chairman insisted that the presence of West Ham in the Olympic
Stadium would be detrimental to the League One team's fortunes, despite the
stadium being just two miles closer to Brisbane Road than at present.
However the Premier League released a statement today in which they
confirmed Hearn had written to them voicing his support for a Tottenham
move. "With particular reference to Leyton Orient, full consideration was
given to a letter written by its Chairman, Barry Hearn, to the Premier
League prior to the Board meeting at which the decision [to allow either
West Ham or Tottenham to move to the OS] was taken," read the statement. "In
the letter, Mr. Hearn accepted that either Tottenham Hotspur or West Ham
United would inevitably move into the Olympic Stadium while outlining his
preference for Tottenham Hotspur. "Mr. Hearn enclosed a copy of a separate
letter written to the Tottenham Hotspur Chairman in which he wished him 'all
success for the prospective move.'
"After the Board had met and reached its decision the Premier League General
Secretary wrote to Mr. Hearn informing him of its decision, the reasoning
behind it and thanking him for his correspondence. "It is regrettable that
Mr. Hearn is now claiming that Leyton Orient had no input into the Board's
decision making process when their views, as expressed in writing at the
time by Mr. Hearn, were given due consideration. "Clearly the position
currently being articulated by Mr. Hearn in the media is at odds with his
original submission. With all this in mind, there is absolutely no question
of the Board's decision being reviewed."
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Olympic Stadium move ratified
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 3rd March 2011
By: Staff Writer
West Ham's move to the Olympic Stadium is now a certainty after the switch
was ratified this morning. Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, and the
Government this morning gave West Ham the green light to move to the stadium
post-2012 games - just three weeks after the OPLC (Olympic Park Legacy
Committee) bestowed preferred-bidder status upon the club. Speaking in a
brief statement, Johnson said: "We are confident West Ham United FC will
provide a secure future for the Olympic stadium - a fantastic multi-use
venue at the heart of the community."
Local Government minister Bob Neill added: This completes the first stage of
this process and means that the Olympic Park Legacy Company are now able to
enter into negotiations to agree a leasefor the Olympic Stadium site. "We
are delighted with the progress that has been made and very pleased we have
reached this very significant milestone in determining the long-term legacy
for the Olympic Park following the Games."
Meanwhile West Ham's Olympic Project Director, Ian Tompkins, told KUMB.com:
"We're absolutely delighted with the news. "We now look forward to
discussing our plans with supporters and will be announcing more details
about this over the coming days, including how fans can get involved in
helping to shape our ideas. We are also hoping to start tours of the new
stadium very soon as well."
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Hammers record £20million loss
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 3rd March 2011
By: Staff Writer
West Ham have released their latest set of accounts for the period up to
31st May 2010. The accounts confirm that West Ham have recorded a pre-tax
loss of some £20.6million, up by over 20 per cent on last year's figures.
However the club's wages-to-turnover ratio has been reduced from 79 per cent
to 70 per cent as a result of a 13 per cent reduction in wage costs (savings
made from player wages, staff and concessions, such as the removal of free
season tickets to the likes of the Lyall family) - a figure considered to be
the uppermost acceptable level. The accounts - the first set revealed since
Davids Gold and Sullivan purchased the club in January 2010 - also reveal
that £10million of debt owed to Straumur, the club's former owners has been
converted into shares. Other debts - including banking covenents of nearly
£40million - have been renegotiated, allowing the club until 2013 to settle
them. However it was also confirmed that over £25million of shareholder cash
- from Sullivan and Gold and other small stakeholders - has been pumped intp
the club to keep it afloat.
The latest accounts - key figures
Annual Turnover: £71.7million (down from £76.1million in 2008/09)
Wage Bill: £50.3million (down from £60million in 2008/09)
Operating Profit/Loss: -£3million (down from -£14.6million in 2008/09)
Profit/Loss before taxation: -£20.6million (up from -£16.2million in
2008/09)
Season ticket sales: 22,475 (down from 23,100 in 2008/09)
Outstanding banking facilities (to be repaid by December 2013): £38.5million
Outstanding loans from CB Holding (to be repaid by 1 September 2011):
£4.6million
CB Holding's stake in West Ham Utd FC: 35%
Straumur's shareholding of CB Holding: 69.4%
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Sullivan warns of 'challenging' years ahead
KUMB.com
Filed: Thursday, 3rd March 2011
By: Staff Writer
David Sullivan has warned that West Ham face at least two more years working
under severe financial constraints. Sullivan, speaking in his Chairman's
statement in the latest set of club accounts admitted that 'belt-tightening'
will continue until 2013, at the earliest, in order to bring the club's
finances under control. "Although results on the field have not been what
anyone would have wanted we believe that the financial statements presented
in this report demonstrate that the club has achieved greater financial
stability over the course of the last 12 months since we took over the
club," he said. "In addition to buying the club, my Co-Chairman, David Gold,
and I have invested £24million into the club before the end of the year and
this resulted in a reduction of £12million in bank borrowings and a
reduction in total net liabilities of £22million. It will take time to pay
off many of the club's inherited historical liabilities but we believe that
progress is being made. "Whilst the club continues to operate under these
financial constraints, competing in the Premier League will continue to be
challenging but everyone at the club is working tirelessly to ensure we
retain our Premier League status this season and, if successful, we will
face the future with renewed optimism."
However in the event of West Ham failing to retain it's Premier League berth
this season, Sullivan insisted that contingency plans were in place to
ensure the club remains on a sound footing. "We will act decisively to give
the club the best possible chance of returning to the Premier League at the
first attempt," he insisted. "However, I wish to emphasise that the club is
financially secure regardless of its league status."
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Not Ba-thered
KUMB.com
Filed: Wednesday, 2nd March 2011
By: Staff Writer
The chairman of this weekend's opponents says he has no qualms over missing
out on signing Demba Ba. Stoke City briefly looked favourites to sign the
West Ham striker back in January when they agreed to pay his former club,
Hoffenheim £7.5million for his services. However the move fell through after
the player failed a medical - and less than a fortnight later, Ba signed for
West Ham in a £1.5million deal. Since then Ba has struck three goals in his
first three Premier League appearances and looked a real livewire. However
Stoke Chairman Peter Coates maintains that signing the player would have
been too much of a risk. "We would have taken the player had he passed the
medical," said Coates. "But we were strongly advised by our medical team
that it was a risk we could not take. "You cannot spend large sums of money
on a high-risk basis. We were disappointed, though, because we wanted to
sign the player and the eventual decision was nothing to do with his
ability."
West Ham face Stoke at the Boleyn Ground this weekend (Saturday 5th) before
the teams meet again at the Brittania Stadium a week later (Sunday 13th) in
the FA Cup quarter finals.
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Hammers given green light
Government rubber stamps Olympic bid
Last updated: 3rd March 2011
SSN
West Ham's move to the Olympic Stadium has been given the go-ahead by the
Government. The club was unanimously selected by the Olympic Park Legacy
Company (OPLC) earlier this month as the preferred bidder to take over the
east London venue after the 2012 Olympics. The Hammers beat off competition
from Premier League rivals Tottenham, with their bid seen as the only one
that fulfilled the five criteria, with a key factor being their desire to
keep the athletics track. Junior communities minister Bob Neill said: "This
completes the first stage of this process and means that the OPLC are now
able to enter into negotiations with the consortium comprising West Ham
United Football Club and the London Borough of Newham to agree a lease for
the Olympic Stadium site on terms that are acceptable to Government and the
Mayor of London and provide value for money to the public sector.
Significant milestone
"We are delighted with the progress that has been made and very pleased we
have reached this very significant milestone in determining the long-term
legacy for the Olympic Park following the Games." In a joint bid with Newham
Council, West Ham intend to convert the 80,000-seater stadium into a
60,000-capacity facility which retains an athletics track. The club aim to
move from Upton Park into the £537million showpiece venue in 2014/15 and
they are planning on spending £95m converting the stadium after the Games.
The OPLC will now negotiate a "mutually acceptable lease" with West Ham and
Newham, and "other options will be considered" if they are unable to reach a
deal. Tottenham's plans, part of a joint bid with AEG sport and
entertainment group, had been to create a football-only stadium without the
track and redevelop Crystal Palacefor athletics. The West Ham bid was
recommended on the grounds it provided value for money for the stadium on a
long-term basis, and London mayor Boris Johnson has promised Tottenham that
he will help them move to an alternative site.
Dust bowl
"The extremely thorough process to select a preferred bidder for the stadium
attracted two outstanding proposals from two great London football clubs,"
he said. "I would like to reassure Tottenham Hotspur that we stand ready to
support them with any plans they now want to take forward for their future
stadium requirements." Johnson added: "I am confident that West Ham will
provide a secure future for the stadium which also sees its iconic design
for the London Games retained for future generations to admire. "Just two
years ago it faced the prospect of becoming a dust bowl staging occasional
athletics events but now we can look forward to a fantastic multi-use venue
at the heart of the community, able to host football and other sports, as
well as concerts and events specifically for local people and schools."
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Robins bring in Spence
Hammers youngster joins following Carey injury
Last updated: 3rd March 2011
SSN
Bristol City have boosted their defensive options by signing Jordan Spence
on a month's loan from West Ham United. The Championship club have lost the
veteran Louis Carey for several weeks after he suffered a skull fracture
against Scunthorpe United last weekend. Robins boss Keith Millen has moved
for Spence to fill the void ahead of Saturday's game away to Coventry City.
Spence has made just one substitute's appearance during his West Ham career
and has yet to feature for Avram Grant's side this season. The 20-year-old
has previously undertaken loan spells at Leyton Orient and Scunthorpe, and
is expected to be in Millen's squad for the trip to the Ricoh Arena.
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Hearn rages at 'savage' move
The Sun
Published: Today
BARRY HEARN will go to court to stop Orient being forced out of business.
The government yesterday announced West Ham will be allowed to move to their
new home in the Olympic Stadium in 2012. And the Premier League have ruled
out a review of their own go-ahead. The stadium is a single tube stop from
Orient's Brisbane Road ground. Hearn said: "It's savage news, very
disappointing. I feel this puts us out of business. We have to take legal
action."
The League claim Hearn had favoured Tottenham's rejected bid for the venue.
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Olympic 2012 stadium: Taxpayer 'may foot West Ham bill'
By Ed Davey
BBC News, London
Taxpayers in London's poorest borough would be liable for a £40m loan to
help West Ham United move into the Olympic Stadium if the venture collapsed,
its chief executive has said. In January Newham Council used its credit
rating to arrange a Treasury loan on more favourable terms than the football
club could have secured. That financed West Ham's bid, which defeated
Tottenham Hotspur in the race to inhabit the stadium after the 2012 Games.
At the time the loan was agreed, the council refused to say whether
taxpayers would be responsible for the debt if West Ham - currently
threatened by relegation from the Premier League - were unable to repay it.
It said this was because of "commercial sensitivity".
Councillors due to vote on the plan were not told either, with 10 large
background papers thought to detail the liability withheld until minutes
before the vote. One councillor spoke out anonymously, saying the public
should be told, while a district auditor said "alarm bells" should ring. It
was eventually passed unanimously by the council, where all 60 sitting
councillors are Labour.
Chief executive Kim Bromley-Derry, in an interview with the BBC, has
admitted for the first time that taxpayers would be liable for the loan.
Asked if the council would have to repay the money if West Ham folded, he
said: "On a theoretical perspective that's true. But we have worked out the
worst case scenario and we are confident that's not going to happen. "We
have been working with KPMG on the business case. We are confident there is
no risk to the local council taxpayer."
Mr Bromley-Derry said the authority considered the possibility of the club
suffering a double relegation. Newham Council, the Olympic borough, is the
most deprived authority in London. Anita Shields, an auditor who works with
other local authorities to ensure financial transparency, said: "Obviously
the risk to the taxpayer should have been mentioned at the start. "It is the
taxpayers who could be footing the bill. "Probably they were hoping nobody
was going to raise these questions." She added: "Why did they not come
forward about it at the start? It's big money - the risk is there."
Newham Council has finalised £100m of cuts over three years, the highest
figure in London. Some 1,600 staff could be made redundant. The council has
previously said the loan did not affect front line services. Mr
Bromley-Derry conceded a loan could have protected jobs and meant the need
for less severe cuts. He said: "We could borrow money to do other things,
there's no doubt . "If we borrowed money to bail out the revenue budget it
would be a one-off and there would be a cost to it."
WHFC jobs 'issue'
The council said it was currently unable to say how long the loan would take
to pay back. Mr Bromley-Derry also admitted it was "an issue" that council
officers instrumental in financing West Ham's stadium bid could later move
into well paid jobs with the club. He said: "We are aware that may be an
issue. If it happens to ex-employees, well that's fine, there's not a lot I
can do about that. "In terms of current employees it's not something I would
expect to see." He added it was likely Newham Council staff would get paid
roles at the company they established to own the stadium. Mike Law, a former
Newham Labour councillor, said: "If Newham staff later wind up on nice
salaries at West Ham serious questions will need to be asked. "The stadium
producing a profit after the loan has been repaid in 10 to 20 years time is
cold comfort to the council employee who is laid off today. "Yet again, it's
the people of one of the country's most deprived boroughs paying for the
extravagances of others."
West Ham United were unavailable for comment.
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