Staveley steps in for West Ham stake after Kretinsky deal fails
Amanda Staveley has agreed to buy a quarter of the relegated London club after Czech investor Daniel Kretinsky’s attempt to acquire the shares collapsed.
A consortium led by Amanda Staveley has agreed to buy a 25.1% stake in West Ham after Czech businessman Daniel Kretinsky failed to complete a purchase of the shares. Vanessa Gold, representing the family trust of her late father David Gold, has opted to sell to Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners instead.
Kretinsky’s exit ends a sale agreed on June 12 that would have made his EP Group the single largest shareholder in the London club. The withdrawal of the Czech investor means a high-profile cross-border ownership play in western European sport has fallen through at the final hurdle. Gold noted that the original deal "and other alternatives that we have discussed could not be brought to fruition."
The transaction is not yet finalised. Under an ongoing pre-emption process, existing West Ham shareholders retain the legal right to buy out the Gold family’s shares before Staveley’s consortium can acquire them. Gold said she wanted to be transparent with fans while the process plays out.
For West Ham, the investment arrives at a critical financial juncture. The club was relegated from the Premier League last season, just two years after winning the Europa Conference League in 2023. Operating in the Championship will trigger an immediate and significant drop in top-tier broadcasting and commercial revenue.
Staveley and her partner Mehrdad Ghodoussi bring a proven track record of football business turnarounds. The pair brokered the Saudi-backed takeover of Newcastle in October 2021. Under their watch, Newcastle transformed from relegation candidates into Champions League participants, eventually winning the Carabao Cup after their departure in the summer of 2024.
Gold said her ambition had been to "ensure the club has the right leadership and ownership to enable West Ham to achieve its potential and return to its rightful place in the Premier League." She added that she was confident Staveley and her partners would bring "deep experience and understanding of what it takes to lead a successful football club."
The London club will begin its attempt to secure an immediate top-flight return at Burnley on 16 August. Until the current ownership shift is resolved, Gold stated she will continue to act in the club’s best interests, continuing the legacy of her father.
