British taxpayers face an even greater financial burden should West Ham United drop into the Championship.
The club’s rent at the London Stadium would be slashed by half from approximately £4.4m annually.
The former Olympic venue has been haemorrhaging money since the 2012 Games, with the most recent accounts from operator E20 Stadium LLP revealing losses of £51.3m for the year ending March 2024, equivalent to nearly £1m every week.
Projected future losses stand at £206.7m, a figure that could rise if the Hammers are relegated.
Every home fixture at the stadium costs taxpayers in excess of £100,000, and Championship football would mean four additional home league matches compared to the Premier League season.
WH Holding Limited, the parent company of West Ham United Football Club Limited, had not submitted its annual report and financial statements for the year ending May 2025 as of Friday morning.
Since the pandemic ended, these accounts have typically been lodged with Companies House by mid-January each year without fail.
Neither submission is expected until at least next month, according to The Telegraph, with the legal deadline falling at the end of February.
British taxpayers face an even greater financial burden should West Ham United drop into the Championship
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Football clubs have previously delayed filing when their figures paint an unflattering picture, and speculation suggests the east London outfit may have recorded losses of around £100m during the previous campaign.
West Ham declined to comment on these reports.
The club’s confirmation statement, due on January 12, was itself submitted eight days overdue on Tuesday.
Should the club fail to avoid the drop, they would become the first team valued above £740million ever to fall into English football’s second tier, triggering the largest overnight valuation collapse in the sport’s history.
The club’s rent at the London Stadium would be slashed by half from approximately £4.4m annually
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By May last year, West Ham’s worth had reached £840m, with only the Premier League’s traditional “big six” commanding higher figures, a valuation entirely dependent on top-flight membership.
Relegation would strip the club of guaranteed prize money exceeding £100m, with Southampton having received £109.2m last season despite finishing bottom with a mere 12 points.
Leeds United’s experience following their 2023 relegation offers a stark warning: central distributions nearly halved from £94.1m to £51m, while broadcasting income plummeted from £17.4m to £2.6m.
The proceeds from Declan Rice’s club-record £105m departure to Arsenal have been frittered away, with the Hammers spending £125m and £170m respectively across the past two transfer windows.
Retaining key players such as captain Jarrod Bowen would prove extremely difficult following relegation
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Big-money acquisitions, including Niclas Füllkrug and Maximilian Kilman, have failed to deliver, while the club’s accounts reveal outstanding transfer debts exceeding £190m, with £100m due by June last year.
Retaining key players such as captain Jarrod Bowen would prove extremely difficult following relegation.
Any player who attracts top-flight interest is likely to depart.
The club is already seeking to extract maximum value from Lucas Paquetá, pursuing a sale to Flamengo on the condition that he returns on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
