Latest news with #LondonStadium
The Sun
5 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Iconic Premier League stadium in turmoil after failing to land naming rights deal TWO YEARS after it was promised
WEST HAM UNITED's London Stadium is facing major financial difficulties. Officials admit the elusive naming rights may not materialise until 2028 - two years after it was promised. 3 3 3 Despite repeated assurances from stadium bosses that a deal was imminent, the venue's owners have been unable to secure a sponsor to help cover the mounting losses. The situation has grown so dire that the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) — which owned the stadium until March — has warned of 'significant risk' in securing a deal in the near future. The Times is reporting that the crisis was outlined in a draft of the LLDC's annual report. The report reveals a worrying financial picture for the iconic stadium. In March, ownership of the venue was transferred to the Greater London Authority (GLA). The report also raised eyebrows over the generous payouts received by former LLDC chief executive, Lyn Garner. Garner was awarded a £228,000 severance package on top of her £304,000 salary after stepping down from the LLDC post. She was quickly appointed chairwoman of the London Stadium's new board, despite her new role being part-time and non-executive. A GLA spokesman defended the move, stating her 'wealth of skills and experience' made her a valuable appointment. Five other senior LLDC executives were also given payouts ranging from £91,000 to £151,000 following the restructuring. Meanwhile, the long-promised naming rights deal remains elusive. Will 'hothead' Kudus fit in at Tottenham after controversial West Ham exit? | Transfers Exposed In early 2023, Garner was confident that an agreement would be reached before the end of the year, but that hope never materialised. Any deal must be approved by West Ham, who share in any income above £4million per year from such agreements. Further complicating matters, West Ham and stadium owners are embroiled in a dispute over costs for staging Women's Super League (WSL) matches. Under the terms of their 2013 concession agreement, the stadium's owners are responsible for expenses like stewarding, security, and electricity, which can add up to around £100,000 per Premier League match. West Ham has offered to cover some of these costs for WSL games, but the offer has yet to be accepted by the London Stadium.
Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Times
Fears grow about lack of London Stadium naming rights deal
A naming rights deal for the London Stadium looks as elusive as ever after venue chiefs admitted there was 'a significant risk' that no sponsor will be found before 2028. The owners of the stadium, which is occupied by West Ham United for most of the year, have been unable to secure a deal to reduce the venue's losses despite previously claiming one was imminent. The risk of a continuing failure is spelt out in the draft annual report of the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), which owned the stadium until March, when it transferred to be directly under the Greater London Authority. The report also reveals that Lyn Garner, the LLDC's chief executive until March, received a £228,000 payoff for stepping down from the position on top of her £304,000 salary, only to be appointed as the chairwoman of the London Stadium's new board. 'Lyn's full-time role as chief executive of LLDC became redundant after a restructure and she received compensation in line with policy and procedures,' a GLA spokesman said. 'Her role at the London Stadium is part-time and is a non-executive role. Her appointment was made in line with policy and she brings a wealth of skills and experience to leading the London Stadium board.' Five other LLDC executives also received payoffs of between £91,000 and £151,000. In early 2023, Garner told the London Assembly she was 'very confident' that it would finally agree a naming rights deal for the loss-making stadium that year but it never happened. West Ham have to agree to any deal and the club shares any income worth more than £4million a year. Meanwhile, West Ham are still in a dispute with the London Stadium owners over who should pick up the costs of staging matches involving their Women's Super League (WSL) team. The club's 2013 concession agreement to use the stadium — labelled as the 'deal of the century' by one London Assembly member — makes the venue's owners responsible for paying costs such as stewarding, security and electricity, which are thought to be about £100,000 for a Premier League match. West Ham are understood to have offered to pay some of the costs for staging a WSL match there — and make a financial loss in doing so — but that offer has not been accepted by the London Stadium. 'We cannot ask London's taxpayers to subsidise the cost of West Ham putting on these matches,' a London Stadium spokesman said. Plans in place for Lionesses parade The FA has pencilled in a victory celebration in central London for Tuesday should England overcome Spain in the Women's Euro 2025 final on Sunday. The plan is understood to include a parade in the capital with a gathering in or near The Mall for the players to display the trophy, but the FA is keeping its cards close to its chest so as not to distract from preparations for the final in Basel, Switzerland. Top teams to cash in with new TV deal The Premier League's new television deal, which starts next month, will mean 70 more matches a season are shown live — which is likely to mean even more money for the top teams. Clubs are paid a 'facility fee' for every live match they take part in and last season each match was worth £890,000. Liverpool, the champions, earned £24.9million and Ipswich Town, who finished 19th, the minimum figure of £8.9million. Next season, every Premier League match will be live on TV apart from those played at 3pm on Saturday, so that will guarantee a facility fee for all clubs whose games are moved due to them playing midweek fixtures in Europe. The plus side for the smaller clubs is that they should also get more money, but just not as much as the bigger ones. Triathlon trouble World Triathlon's reputation has been dealt a serious blow after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Uruguay's executive board member, Líber García, breached its anti-corruption policy in the lead up to last year's presidential election. It found that García had implied to Australia's Michelle Cooper, a rival candidate to the eventual winner Antonio Fernández Arimany, that she would lose her place on the board if she did not withdraw from the contest. Britain's candidate for the election, Ian Howard, whose campaign was backed by £12,000 of public funding from UK Sport, told World Triathlon's congress in October: 'We stand at a crossroads, you can choose more of the same and see the reputation of our federation increasingly damaged: unholy alliances, dodgy deals, dirty tricks.' 'Emperor' Infantino Football's international players' union, Fifpro, has accused Fifa and its president, Gianni Infantino, of 'autocratic' leadership. 'Football needs responsible leadership, not emperors,' Fifpro said in a statement after a meeting of 58 national player unions, in response to Fifa announcing an agreement with unrecognised player representatives. Infantino hosted that summit in New York but Fifpro and the English PFA — who have ongoing legal action against Fifa in the European courts — were not invited.
Times
23-07-2025
- Business
- Times
Athletics' plan to kick West Ham out of stadium for up to three weeks
West Ham United will be forced to temporarily move out of their home if the World Athletics Championships is staged at the London Stadium in September 2029. Last week the government announced that it would provide the financial backing for a bid, with £35million from the Treasury and a further £10million from the London mayor's office now guaranteed. However, the championships now forms the finale for the international track and field season as part of a new World Athletics initiative, meaning that the nine-day event will likely take place after the start of the 2029-30 football season. The formal bid from UK Athletics, UK Sport and the other stakeholders will also need to cover alternative dates in July and August. But September will be the preference for World Athletics, should London be chosen, and organisers would therefore need to look for the event to coincide with the international break at the start of the month, which usually involves a midweek and weekend game. That, however, would not fully resolve the fixture issue for West Ham. The process for changing the seating configuration that is required to accommodate the athletics track is far quicker than the 15 days it used to take, and can now be done in as little as four days. But that still means the organisers of the athletics event would need the stadium for between two and three weeks, insiders estimate. That would, therefore, mean the Premier League fixtures — as well as Uefa fixtures, should West Ham qualify for Europe that season — being arranged accordingly, with the east London club playing all their matches away from home over that period. All of West Ham's games during the event would need to be played away from home REX The Times understands there are certain contractual obligations that mean the London Stadium has to allow for a limited number of global sports events to take precedence. A London Stadium spokesperson said: 'We are delighted that London Stadium is seen as a potential venue for the World Athletics Championships in 2029, one of the biggest events on the world sporting calendar. The 2017 Championships we hosted to sold-out crowds were a huge success, bringing investment and more than £100million in economic benefits to London. 'It is early days in the process for 2029 and full details of any bid are to be developed, including potential dates for the event. During this process we will work closely with all our stakeholders, including West Ham, to make sure any benefits to the venue, city and country are considered fully alongside all other requirements.' Jack Buckner, the UKA chief executive, said: 'We will be having that discussion with them. 'But we are delighted to now have the government support for this bid. There's a ton of work. But to get to the start line, it feels great. And that level of backing and support is massive.'
Daily Mail
22-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
West Ham face vacating London Stadium for THREE WEEKS if major sporting event is given green light
West Ham face being without their stadium for up to three weeks if London is awarded the 2029 World Athletics Championships. Last weekend, the Government pledged £45million of public funds to support a bid to stage the World Championships at the London Stadium in four years' time. However, World Athletics' preference is for the event to be held in September, unlike the last time it was hosted in London in 2017 and took place at the start of August. That would mean the athletics meet would clash with the start of the 2029-2020 football season and would force West Ham to temporarily move out of their home. While the World Championships is only nine days long, organisers would still need around four days before the event to make the necessary changes to the London Stadium to accommodate the athletics track, before returning it to normal. The disruption facing West Ham would be minimised if the athletics extravaganza was staged at the same time as football's traditional international break in September. West Ham could be forced to vacate their stadium for three weeks if London is awarded the 2029 World Athletics Championships The Government last week backed a bid to host the event at the London Stadium in four years' time However, the Hammers may still have to play a run of Premier League matches away from home, as well as any possible European ties. UK Athletics chief executive Jack Buckner admitted he would be 'having discussions' with West Ham in the coming weeks ahead of their 2029 bid being officially lodged at the end of the summer. A London Stadium spokesperson said: 'We are delighted that London Stadium is seen as a potential venue for the World Athletics Championships in 2029, one of the biggest events on the world sporting calendar. 'The 2017 Championships we hosted to sold-out crowds were a huge success, bringing investment and more than £100million in economic benefits to London. 'It is early days in the process for 2029 and full details of any bid are to be developed, including potential dates for the event. 'During this process we will work closely with all our stakeholders, including West Ham, to make sure any benefits to the venue, city and country are considered fully alongside all other requirements.' This year's World Championships take place in Tokyo from September 13 to 21, while the 2027 event in Beijing is scheduled for September 11 to 19.
The Sun
22-07-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
West Ham face having to vacate London Stadium for weeks if major sporting event gets green light
WEST HAM may be forced to vacate the London Stadium for several weeks if the capital gets the green light to stage the 2029 World Athletics Championships. Last Saturday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer gave his backing to a London bid to host the marquee track-and-field event in four years' time – this involves £45million of investment funding. 3 3 A decision will be made by World Athletics next year but president Seb Coe insists it will be a 'competitive' tender process with other cities bidding for the 2029 and 2031 editions at the same time. Yet World Athletics' preference is to host their Champs at the end of the outdoor athletics season, in the months of September or August. This would come into direct contact with the Hammers home Premier League matches that month and any European ties, should they qualify for the major competitions. Athletics bosses would require sufficient time before the start date to get the stadium ready for world-class action and this would mean lengthy talks behind-the-scenes. London was praised for its full crowds when it held the World Athletics Championships in 2017, five years after the highly-successful Olympic and Paralympic Games. UK Athletics Jack Buckner said: 'We will be in discussions with them. 'We are delighted to have the PM's backing. I mean we have been really keen to get this bid together. 'There's a ton of work. But to get to the start line, it feels great. And that level of backing and support is massive really. 3 'London has the crowd, the energy, the passion for the sport. This place touches a real deep emotional chord, people remember 2012 and 2017. 'It kind of feels like a home of the sport really.' SunSport has contacted West Ham for a response. A London Stadium spokesperson said: 'We are delighted that London Stadium is seen as a potential venue for the World Athletics Championships in 2029, one of the biggest events on the world sporting calendar. 'The 2017 Championships we hosted to sold out crowds were a huge success bringing investment and more than £100m in economic benefits to London. 'It is early days in the process for 2029, and full details of any bid are to be developed, including potential dates for the event. 'During this process we will work closely with all our stakeholders, including West Ham, to make sure any benefits to the venue, city and country are considered fully alongside all other requirements.' The Worlds are nine days in duration but organisers would need it in advance of that to set everything up inside and outside the stadium.
