A mystery wealthy American investor is making early moves about possibly buying into West Ham and a global superstar could be one of three potential candidates.
Takeover speculation has lingered around West Ham ever since the club’s move to the London Stadium in 2016.
Both US and Middle Eastern bidders have been linked with possible interest in both full takeover and partial investment in the recent past.
Especially since the Gold family put as much as 25 per cent of the club up for sale back in October 2023.
Vanessa Gold, who survives her sadly passed former West Ham co-owner dad David Gold and sister Jacqueline, announced her intention to sell 19 months ago on the club’s official site.
“I would consider selling a proportion of our shares to the right partner,” Ms Gold said.
“I have spoken to each of the other three major shareholders at West Ham United, David Sullivan, Daniel Kretinsky and Tripp Smith, who have been very supportive.
“Any transaction to purchase some of our shares will be with my father’s legacy at the forefront of my mind which, of course, prioritises his beloved West Ham United.
“I have appointed Rothschild and Co to advise us on any discussions and will keep the other shareholders, the club and our supporters updated on any significant developments.”
Global superstar could be one of three likely candidates for mystery US West Ham bid
In the wake of that announcement it was claimed the West Ham shares had ‘drawn international interest’ – including from the US.
But there have been no official club updates since, suggesting nothing has materialised yet.
That could be about to change, though.
Last month a leading journalist revealed West Ham could be the subject of takeover interest from elsewhere with a change of ownership even mooted.
West Ham actually have the third richest owners in the Premier League.
Now they could become even wealthier after it was claimed a mystery American investor has been ‘preparing an offer to buy the Gold family shares’.
ExWHUemployee claims on The West Ham Way that ‘talks are only at the drawing board/lawyer stage at present’.
In a further update from Sullivan confidant Sean Whetstone, the mystery American bidder will need to provide ‘proof of funds’ in order to be taken seriously by West Ham and to get to look at the club’s finances in detail.
The news has stirred excitement and hope among a disillusioned Hammers fanbase.
West Ham have made it clear they are at their limit in terms of PSR this summer, meaning transfer spending will be restricted to whatever the club can raise in sales.
Other than sales, returning to European football and significantly better league and cup performances, one of the only ways West Ham can give themselves more wiggle room with PSR in the coming years is by securing new investment to add to the income column on their balance sheet.
As the guessing game begins in earnest over the identity of the mystery US bidder, Hammers News takes a look at some of the potential names in the frame.
And based on reports in the not too distant past, a global superstar could be one of three likely candidates.
Here Hammers News takes a look at the three most likely potential candidates:
Big tick for mega rich Kotick amid West Ham bid rumours
Back in December 2013, two months after Vanessa Gold put the family shares up for sale, American money man Bobby Kotick was reported to be weighing up a bid.
Whetstone, who counts Sullivan and vice-chair Karren Brady among his close contacts, has previously named Activision Blizzard CEO Kotick as one American behind potential investment.
Activision Blizzard is the world’s largest and most profitable western interactive entertainment company of the last 30 years.
The firm is responsible for huge gaming franchises such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft.
The New York-born 62-year-old’s net worth is listed anywhere between £500m and £5.5bn.
The former sum is more likely closer to the true figure as the latter would have taken into account Kotick’s stake in Activision Blizzard which has a vast turnover of more than £5.7bn a year and is valued at nearly £60bn.
Kotick was first linked with West Ham when he was on his way out of Activision Blizzard after overseeing its £54.7bn acquisition by Microsoft.
And he left with the most golden of handshakes which, all told, amounted to around £200m.
Now Whetstone has floated Kotick as one of the possible names behind the new potential bid for the Gold family West Ham shares, saying ‘he is reported to have retained an interest in investing in a Premier League club’.
Inside man Tripp a possible tip for Hammers
American Albert ‘Tripp’ Smith would be well-placed to lead a US bid for the Gold family shares.
Smith is an American investment executive who was the co-founder of GSO Capital Partners, the credit investment platform of The Blackstone Group.
He has serious money himself but the people he associates with in the US have even more.
Smith bought the last of CB Holding’s 10 per cent of shares in 2017 and also took Daniel Svanstrom’s spot on West Ham’s board. Although he, Gold and Sullivan each agreed to reduce their shares in the Irons in November 2021 when Kretinsky bought a 27 per cent stake in a deal worth around £150m.
Tripp Smith currently owns eight per cent of West Ham and according to Whetstone ‘should not be ruled out’.
“He would certainly be a prime candidate to lead an American consortium and has many financial contacts who could easily raise the money required,” Whetstone said.
Could Shaquille O’Neal be mystery West Ham bidder?
Last summer we reported on Hammers News about claims global superstar Shaquille O’Neal wants to buy into West Ham.
It is claimed O’Neal, better known by most as ‘Shaq’, visited the London Stadium last year to watch a game and was bitten by the football bug.
Reports stated 53-year-old O’Neal has a serious interest in investing big in West Ham.
“Shaq loves British football and he has been talking about putting some serious cash into the club,” a source told The Sun 11 months ago.
“He went to a game at the end of the season and loved it. It’s now a case of whether the financials stack up for him.
“Shaq is really interested in what deal he could strike.”
The 7ft 1in worldwide household name has a net worth listed at $500m (£395m) according to Clutch Points.
The LA Lakers and NBA legend has become a big investor since retirement and has revealed his hunger for new ventures.
Shaq began to build up his massive net worth during his playing days in the NBA, where he cashed out throughout his illustrious career.
Whether the alleged US bid ever comes to fruition at West Ham remains to be seen.
But fans should not get their hopes up on any deal solving the club’s PSR situation this summer window.
Because even if both sides were willing and able, deals of this kind typically take anything between 12-18 months to complete.
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