West Ham United have broken their silence on the club's ownership after reports that a consortium led by Amanda Staveley has agreed to buy a 25.1 per cent stake.
In a statement released on Saturday, the Championship club confirmed that joint-chair Vanessa Gold has reached a provisional agreement to sell her shares to a consortium of PCP Capital Partners, led by Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi, in partnership with Ashland Forest Capital Partners.
Ownership process explained
West Ham said: "West Ham United can confirm it is aware of the announcement from Joint-Chair Vanessa Gold that she has reached a provisional agreement to sell her shares to a consortium of PCP Capital Partners, led by Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi, in partnership with Ashland Forest Capital Partners."
"The proposed transaction will now be subject to a pre-emption rights process. This provides all existing shareholders with the opportunity to acquire their proportional percentage of shares in round one, and any remaining shares in round two. This process will take approximately two months and, until it is completed, nothing will change regarding the ownership structure of the Club."
The update follows earlier reports that the family of the late David Gold had agreed to sell a 16 per cent stake to Royal Mail owner Daniel Kretinsky. Staveley is reported to have offered a higher price to buy the full stake.
Club reassures supporters
West Ham moved to reassure fans that the situation would not affect the day-to-day running of the club. "West Ham United would like to assure supporters that the day-to-day running of the football club is in no way affected by this situation," the statement continued.
"Preparations for the new season continue to take shape with diligence and focus, and we thank all fans for their continued loyal backing at this time."
The club said it will make no further comment while the pre-emption process runs its course.
