West Ham fans given London Stadium hope for next season as dates set for supporter return in Italy and Spain

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West Ham United fans have been given hope of a return to the London Stadium to watch live football next season.

The Premier League campaign has been on hold for three months as a result of the global health crisis.

But the season will resume this week behind closed doors for the remaining nine matches.

West Ham are back in action against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

West Ham back in action this week

David Moyes has to navigate nine games in six weeks in a bid to keep West Ham up.

Hammers fans have and will receive pro-rata refunds on their season tickets.

Speculation has been rife over when and how fans can return to stadiums safely.

Cynics and rival fans have quipped that the London Stadium is perfect for social distancing given the gaps between the upper and lower tiers and the terraces to the action.

But after a tough few months West Ham fans like so many others just want to get back to meeting up for matchdays even if some haven’t taken to the London Stadium yet.

Hope for fans from Italy and Spain

And there is great hope from Italy and Spain that West Ham fans can return for next season.

That’s because fans are already set to return for the restart in Italy. While Spain’s La Liga has also announced plans for supporters to return to matches in phases.

Poland, Russia and Serbia have already announced their plans to reopen stadiums to approximately 25 per cent capacity from June.

The likes of The Telegraph and Corriere dello Sport claim stadiums in Italy and Spain could re-open to a third of capacity.

If applied to the Premier League for West Ham then as many as 20,000 fans could be present.

Hammers fans to return next season?

The Telegraph claims Richard Masters, the Premier League’s chief executive, confirmed it was looking at proposals to allow fans to attend live games from September onwards.

The virus will ultimately dictate what happens for next season.

But it is a great incentive for West Ham fans and the players. The prospect they could be together again in a matter of months is motivation on both sides.

The issue has also meant West Ham fans have been unable to continue protests against co-owners David Sullivan, David Gold and their vice-chairman Karren Brady.