Football finance guru Kieran Maguire has responded to West Ham’s major new deal with Barclays after a £40m payment.
- Hammers News exclusive
If there is something Kieran Maguire doesn’t know about football finance then it probably isn’t worth knowing.
So when it comes to West Ham and their current financial position, his is as educated a voice on the subject as you could hope to have.
Hammers fans have been up in arms about the club’s bleak financial situation, which is forcing them to sell players like Mohammed Kudus to bitter rivals Spurs just to bring money in for signings.
There is particular anger given most supporters, journalists and financial analysts assumed West Ham were in excellent financial fettle having sold Academy product Declan Rice for a pure profit of over £100m just two years ago and with revenue being boosted by three consecutive seasons in Europe – not to mention winning a first major trophy in over four decades.
Hammers fans baffled by club’s poor financial situation
West Ham’s owners recently dropped a £100m bombshell by recently revealing the club are expecting losses exceeding that figure when the next accounts are published in December.
Hammers supporters went into full meltdown after West Ham insider Sean Whetstone reported that the club could be in breach of Premier League financial fair play rules unless they sold players this summer.
As a result – and as has since been proved – Graham Potter started the transfer window with a budget of zero and was only able to sign El Hadji Malick Diouf and Kyle Walker-Peters after selling Kudus for £54.5m.
Hammers News warned financial restrictions could be brewing last year when it emerged West Ham did a £69m deal with Barclays to get access to transfer cash owed to them early in order to help fund last summer’s £155m spend.
However, it was revealed last month that West Ham could have money to spend – and plenty of it – if majority owner David Sullivan, Czech billionaire co-owner Daniel Kretinsky and the club’s other board members were willing to inject £90m into the club by way of rights issue – as is permitted by PSR.
There has been no sign of any move from Sullivan or Kretinsky to do that and no progress on any potential takeover or buy-in.
So Kudus had to be sold to a direct rival instead.
Having borrowed against all transfer funds owed to them before the Kudus sale, with no European football to boost income and big losses looming, money is tight in east London.
Fan anger and concern bubbled to the surface again yesterday when football finance guru Maguire posted about West Ham’s accounts on social media.
Maguire on West Ham’s new big-money Barclays deal after £40m payment
Maguire, the author of the Price of Football books and co-host of the podcast of the same name, posted images of West Ham documents from Companies House about further borrowing by the club.
The broadcast revenue is where the big money comes from for clubs in the Premier League.
It is the huge number – in excess of £100m per season for most clubs – which generally separates English football’s top division from most others around the world.
Borrowing against future Premier League revenue means a big-money agreement for West Ham.
In the minds of many it would also suggest a huge risk – especially with many tipping the Hammers to be relegated next season.
“West Ham appear to renew their borrowing arrangement with Barclays which is secured on future Premier League broadcast payments and property assets of the club,” Maguire said on X.
Now Maguire has reacted to West Ham’s new big-money Barclays deal after a £40m payment.
The Hammers’ new agreement with Barclays bank is secured against the Premier League payment of central fund to the club for the 2025/2026 season and also the Premier League’s basic award payment to West Ham for the 2026/2027 season.
The paperwork was published yesterday but is dated July 16 – the day after West Ham were due to repay £40m to Barclays.
Hammers News has now spoken to Maguire about the new deal with Barclays, what it means for West Ham and whether there is anything to worry about.
His assessment will undoubtedly frustrate supporters, who Maguire admits would prefer to see the owners loan the money at a cheaper rate.
Although he does make it clear it is not something out of the ordinary – or to be particularly worried about for fans.
Maguire says fans would prefer owners to loan West Ham money
“Yes there are plenty of football clubs that borrow and have facilities such as this,” Maguire exclusively told Hammers News.
“I think this is as much to do with an overdraft facility that West Ham have with Barclays as anything else.
“So, they will dip into it at certain parts of the year and others where they got match day revenues or they’ve sold a player and they’ve got instalments coming in.
“They’ll be able to deal with that as cash coming in.
“But football revenues are quite volatile. Their costs are relatively constant over the course of a season, in terms of wages and other overheads and so on.
“So, it is a common feature. I think we’re just more sensitive about football clubs borrowing money than we are for any other companies that we have regular contact with because your football club means that much more to you.
“But there’s nothing to worry about. In an ideal world, I think West Ham fans would rather that they borrow from the owners at a cheaper rate.
“But when (David) Gold and Sullivan did lend to West Ham, which was a few years ago, the interest rates weren’t particularly cheap, weren’t expensive, but they weren’t just a nominal 1 per cent either.”
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