Staveley watches West Ham win amid ownership saga

Amanda Staveley, a prospective owner of West Ham United, attended a match against Wolves at London Stadium. She was invited by co-chair Vanessa Gold as the deadline for offers on Staveley's 25.1% stake in the club approached. In July, Gold and Staveley agreed on a £600m valuation for the club. Gold had also negotiated a deal with West Ham's other co-chair, Daniel Kretinsky, to sell a portion of his share.

Under West Ham's ownership structure, any external investment must be offered to current significant shareholders, who have first refusal before other buyers. The 30-day deadline for accepting the offer is approaching, but it remains unclear how the situation will unfold. West Ham's majority shareholder, David Sullivan, owns 38.8% of the club.

Sullivan announced his intention to challenge allegations made in a BBC Panorama and Times investigation in June. Kretinsky, with 27% ownership, recently sold over 2% of his stake to Czech businessman Jakub Havrlant, which could allow him to acquire all of Gold's shares without exceeding a 50% shareholding threshold. This would trigger a clause forcing him to offer the remaining shares on unfavorable terms.

Current sources believe Sullivan is unlikely to increase his shares, but it is uncertain whether Kretinsky's share sale might face legal challenges, as it would prevent him from purchasing the entire club.