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News
West Ham vice-chair Karren Brady handed critical task as landmark £125m deal on the line
It might be on the backburner in light of recent developments with Julen Lopetegui, but news from Premier League HQ suggests Karren Brady may have one eye on a full or part takeover.
Brady is one of the best paid directors in the Premier League but is a polarising figure in East London because many believe that West Ham under her control are consu🌳med by commercial interests.
As David Sullivan’s enforcer, Brady has borne the brunt of the inte𓆏nse criticism relating to the Hammers’ ticket pricing strategy in recent months,𒈔 for example.
West Ham fans have been leading the charge in the Stop Exploiting Loyalty camꦕpaign with their weekly ‘Black Bubbles’ protest, where hundreds balloons are released onto the pitch to protest soaring prices.
West Ham are phasing out concessions prices (for juniors and the eld🌠erly) for season ticket holders, while concessions prices for matchday tickets are now only available for games in bands five and six.
What’s more, there have been price increases across the board for single-issue match✅day t🥀ickets.
As football finance expert Kieran Maguire put it when asked by TBR Football about thi🤡s issue on a wider scale, “the so-called ‘legacy fan’ has outlived their usefulness to clubs.”
West Ham’s riposte? Pointing out that they have more season ticket holders than any other top flight club while suggesting that prices are rising to keep the club competitive in the transfer market.
There is at least some merit to that argument. West Ham have 55,000 season ticket holders, which is 88 per cent of their stadium’s capacity. That is virtually unheard of in the Premier League and beyond.
But given the insipid quality of ꦓfootball on show at the London Stadium at present, price rise൩s of any description are tough to justify. It is their worst start to a season for over a decade.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 12 |  FulhamFulham | 13 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 19 |
| 13 |  B’mouthBournemouth | 13 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 20 | 19 | 1 | 18 |
| 14 |  West HamWest Ham | 14 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 18 | 27 | -9 | 15 |
| 15 |  EvertonEverton | 14 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 21 | -7 | 14 |
| 16 |  LeicesterLeicester | 14 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 19 | 28 | -9 | 13 |
Julen Lopetegui will remain in charge for next Monday’s match against Wolves after Brady and her peers on the board voted – unanimously, is the party line, although TBR has been told otherwise – to back him
Significantly,ℱ while Sullivan remains the main decision maker, that boardroom structure contains no one party with majority voting rights, as illustrated by another football finance expert, Greg Cordell, below.
Daniel Kretinsky, who has the option to take full control of West Ham for a set price but shows no sign of exercising that right, appears to be something of an absentee lanജdlord.
A chunk of Vanessa Gold’s shares are for sale but there has been ꦡlittle progress on that front.
That is despite Brady having visited the Middle East to court investmeඣnt and the Rothschild bank having been enlisted to aid the search.
But even if a shake-up of the club’s corporate str🔥ucture is not immediately in the offing, the hierarchy appear to be sꦐignalling that they are looking to the long term.
Karren Brady lobbying for Premier League in Parliament – prelude to fresh investment at West Ham?
This week, the Premier League wrote to﷽ West Ham and other clubs urging them to engage with their local MPs to help water down the imminent introduction of an independent regulator for English football.
The government-backed regulator will have powers to safeguard the interest of fans and promote the long-term financial sustainability of the game, but its exact remi𒀰t is yet to be confirmed.
The bill is universally unpopular among Premier League clubs, but West Ham have ꧟been the most publicly vocal about their opposition to the regulator.
Brady, as a member of the House of Lords, is the clo🐷se🅷st executive in the Premier League to the bill itself.
She is now actively lobbying against the bill in Parliament’s second chamber and has made several addresses on the subject, most recently in꧒ the last 24 hours.
This has been actively encouraged by the Premier League, TBR understands, with Brady effectively given the task of being the institution’s eyes and ears on the ground in Westminꦗster.
The Premier League – and almost certainly the Irons themselves – think the regulator could scare off foreign investment. For Davi💫d Sullivan, that would reduce the price he might one day recei🍰ve for his stake.
Brady fighting back against £125m EFL distribution deal
Why exactly are Premier League clubs, and Brady’𒊎s West Ham in particular, so opposed to the regulator.
For one, clubs are bu♌siness♕ and businesses almost never favour increased regulation and red tape.
Secondly, the꧟ regulato𝔉r could have the power to enforce a new financial distribution mechanism between the EFL and Premier League.
The Premier League has offered £125m in extra funding pe♋r year to the EFL to address long-running concerns about the financial imbalance bet🔯ween the two levels of the pyramid.
The EFL has rebuffed that offer. Brady has explicitly said that the EFL already gets more than its fair share and does not𝄹 have a divine right to the millions 🐭the Premier League earns because of its global appeal.
The regulator will be introduced. Of t💯hat, there is no doubt.
But while the Premier League and its loudest voices have th⛎e opportunity to have it diluted as much as possible, they will do everything in their power to act on it.