English Premier League football club West Ham United is at loggerheads with the London Legacy Development Corporation over plans to increase the capacity of London Stadium.
According to UK newspaper The Telegraph, Gerry Murphy, acting chief executive of the LLDC, yesterday (Wednesday) told the London Assembly that West Ham is keen on increasing the capacity of the stadium from 57,000 to 66,000.
The seats are already in place, but West Ham is only allowed to play matches at a capacity of 57,000 due to stadium regulations. West Ham initially wants to increase the capacity by 3,000 to 60,000.
The Telegraph notes that the club’s dispute with LLDC stems from the costs involved with making these extra seats available. Another sticking point is said to be the extra revenue that would be made by making the seats available.
According to The Telegraph, Murphy told a London Assembly Budget Monitoring Sub-Committee meeting: “There is a dispute with West Ham about what the contract says in terms of capacity.
“West Ham have absolutely said that they want to increase the capacity to 60,000. And actually they want to further increase the capacity to 66,000.
“LLDC and E20 (the landlords) disagrees with their interpretation of the contract. We feel that actually if West Ham want to enjoy more seats then they should commensurately pay more. And that’s the gist of the disagreement between us and it is subject to legal proceedings.”
West Ham insists that it is already paying for a 60,000-capacity stadium. In a statement issued to Press Association Sport, a West Ham spokesperson said: “These seats are in London Stadium already, have always been there, and have already been paid for under the terms of our concession agreement.
“Having sought a resolution of this matter for many months, West Ham United are seeking a legal declaration.”
Murphy added: “West Ham’s argument is they would receive all of the extra revenue from the extra seats. We would contend we should get a share of that.”
Image: Hammersfan
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