West Ham Wins
Olympic Stadium

West Ham United soccer club has finally been handed the keys to London’s Olympic Stadium, suggesting the issue is now all over but the shouting.

The early signs suggest there may be a whole load of shouting, particularly from those who either think the stadium’s legacy has been mishandled from the outset, West Ham’s benefiting too much from the public purse, or – in the case of Leyton Orient soccer club – the bidding process was fundamentally flawed.

Those who blame the London Legacy Development Corporation for what’s turned into a very public shambles point out the nonsense of ever insisting the Olympic venue remain primarily an athletics facility, which seemed to stem from idealism getting the better of common sense.

They pointed out that Manchester’s Etihad Stadium, which was first used for the 2002 Commonwealth Games, would likely be sitting empty if Manchester City soccer club hadn’t become the main anchor tenant.

At the time, many said a site that’s primarily used for track and field isn’t financially sustainable, while converting the 54,000-capacity stadium to make it more soccer-friendly will now cost the country between £150 million to £190 million – or at least 75 times what the Hammers will pay in annual rent.

Former sports minister Richard Caborn described it as “the biggest mistake of the Olympics.”

“West Ham are basically getting a stadium costing more than £600 million for just £15 million and a small amount in annual rent,” he said.

The £15 million is what the club’s chipping in toward the conversion costs, while the balance will get met mainly from the public purse and a £40 million loan from the local Newham council.

West Ham chief exec Karen Brady has rubbished the idea that the club got a “free ride,” pointing out that it will also hand over a share of any money that comes in from naming rights and other revenues such as music concerts.

This summer Live Nation, which teamed with West Ham during the original bidding process, has moved its Hard Rock Calling (June 29-30) and Wireless (July 12-14) festivals to the Olympic site.

West Ham owners David Gold and David Sullivan will also have to agree to part with a share of any profit they make, should they sell the club.

London Mayor Boris Johnson reportedly stepped in to prevent a re-occurrence of what was one of the less palatable aspects of Manchester City moving into the old Commonwealth Games stadium.

Former club owner Thaksin Shinawatra personally made £90 million when he sold the club to Abu Dhabi United Group in 2011, although the city of Manchester had fronted up most of the money needed to convert its home into the UK Premier League’s fifth-biggest stadium.

Having West Ham move in for the start of the 2016-2017 soccer season should mark the end of what’s been a controversial seven-year process, although even this result could conceivably get derailed by Orient chairman Barry Hearn’s commitment to seek a judicial review of the bidding process.

His complaint hinges on the fact his club wasn’t able to explore the possibility of a ground share with West Ham.
The original bidding process, which West Ham also won, was scrapped in the face of legal action from Orient and Tottenham Hotspur.