West Ham United ownership battle may go to court as Staveley's £150m takeover bid faces block

Published Aug 5, 10:25 PM UTC

The battle for control of West Ham United could escalate to legal proceedings. A consortium led by Amanda Staveley, who previously led the Saudi takeover of Newcastle United, has agreed a £150 million deal with the family of late co-owner David Gold to acquire his 25.1% stake. This is seen as her first step toward full control of the club. However, current co-owner Daniel Kretinsky, a Czech billionaire, is attempting to block the deal. Kretinsky plans to reduce his own stake from 27% to below 25% to trigger preemptive rights to buy the Gold family shares, while avoiding his own stake exceeding 50%—which would force him to buy out David Sullivan's 38.8% stake at an inflated price. Some believe Kretinsky's sale of shares to another Czech businessman, Jakub Havrant, may violate West Ham's articles of association. Staveley's consortium includes American investors and values the club at £600 million. If Kretinsky succeeds, he may need support from American billionaire Albert Tripp Smith, who holds an 8% stake.