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VIPs to arrive at West Ham by helicopter as flashy move all part of takeover masterplan
West Ham are implementing a series of controversial measures with a long-term view of increasing their enterprise value.
The current Hammers regime are believed to be courting new investors, with Vanessa Gold – daughter of the late David Gold – willing to listen to offers for a chunk of her shares.
Vice chair Karren Brady recently jetted out to the Middle East to canvass possible investors, although that trip is not believed to have yielded any meaningful results.
It also looks like Daniel Kretinsky upping his stake in the club is not on the agenda any time soon.
The Czech billionaire is preoccupied with two major takeover projects at present, of the Royal Mail and French IT giants Atos.
Meanwhile, the relationship between GSB and the supporters, which has always been turbulent to say the least, has soured significantly in recent weeks.
That is thanks to controversial new ticket prices and a concessions policy which fans allege is pricing bedrock supporters out.
With that in mind, the latest news on the ticketing front may leave supporters exasperated.
West Ham launch helicopter experience
In a development which disenfranchised fans might say is the epitome of modern football, West Ham have launched a new matchday package, available exclusively to the most monied fans.
As relayed by WestHamFootball via , £4,000 will buy two supporters a helicopter tour of the city before arriving at the London Stadium in time for the clash against Aston Villa on Saturday 17 August.
West Ham are far from unique in offering these kinds of experiences, with clubs the world over attempting to squeeze as much cash as possible from the hospitality scene.
The Irons’ matchday income was £41m last season, which was behind only the so-called ‘Big Six’ in the Premier League.
However, with the likes of Aston Villa, Everton and Leeds all working on stadium expansion or rebuild projects, the club will be plotting to exploit any opportunity to push the envelope.
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TBR Analysis: Matchday income crucial to West Ham takeover prospects
West Ham are limited in terms of what they can do at the London Stadium because of the nature of the agreement with the LLDC landlords.
While the club are paying a peppercorn rent of around £4m per year, it also means that they cannot capitalise on commercial events at the stadium, nor can they significantly increase capacity.
Both commercial and matchday income are seen as key growth areas by investors, especially those in private equity who are flooding into the Premier League acquisition market.
That means that, as they see it, increasing ticket prices is the only recourse left to GSB to raise matchday income and, by extension, enterprise value over the long term.
West Ham fans can only hope that the excellent work being done by groups such as , who are organising a sponsor boycott, can get the club to change course.