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Czech billionaire to increase his stake from 27% to 43%Kretinsky and Gold ‘deeply concerned’ by revelationsDaniel Kretinsky, the owner of Royal Mail, is set to overtake David Sullivan as West Ham’s largest shareholder after agreeing to buy an additional stake in the club from the Gold family. The Czech billionaire has moved to increase his power at West Ham after Sullivan stepped down as a director and co-chair of the club last Saturday, before a joint investigation by the Times and Panorama reporting on seven women accusing him of abusing his power and preying on them for sex in claims that date back to the 1980s and 90s.Kretinsky will increase his stake from 27% to 43% after agreeing to buy a portion of shares from Vanessa Gold, who inherited her 25% stake after the death of her father, David Gold, in January 2023.Gold and Kretinsky have said the deal will be ratified in the next few weeks and revealed they have “agreed to vote jointly on key matters and to support the strategy targeting an immediate return to the Premier League”.West Ham are in major financial difficulties after their relegation last month, and Kretinsky intends to inject capital in an attempt to help Nuno Espirito Santo, the club’s manager, build a squad capable of winning promotion.Sullivan, who categorically denies all of the allegations against him, has been the club’s largest shareholder until now and was the most influential figure at West Ham. It remains unclear if Sullivan intends to sell his 38.8% stake, although that decision could be taken out of his hands if the Independent Football Regulator decides to follow its preliminary inquiries into the allegations against the 77-year-old.The IFR has the power to force the former pornography baron to divest his shares if it concludes he no longer meets the required standards of honesty and integrity to own a football club. A nonexecutive director on the IFR, Tara Warren, has been removed from any potential investigation into Sullivan to avoid conflict of interest. Warren was a senior director of West Ham until February.Kretinsky, who became a shareholder at West Ham after paying £150m for a stake from Sullivan and David Gold in 2021, will face a battle to lift morale and get the club back on track.A source with knowledge of the club’s inner workings described the situation behind the scenes as a “mess”. West Ham made a loss of £104.2m last year and need to raise more than £100m in transfer sales, raising the prospect of them losing key talent such as Jarrod Bowen, Mateus Fernandes and Crysencio Summerville. They do not have a sporting director and their head of technical recruitment, Max Hahn, has handed in his resignation.Kretinsky and Gold released a statement on Saturday morning saying they were “deeply concerned” by the allegations made by the Times and Panorama. A source said it was not until 21 May that Sullivan informed the full board at West Ham of the potential of the story concerning his alleged behaviour towards women being published.It was only after relegation to the Championship that board members were also told Sullivan has been restricted from interacting with West Ham’s women and youth teams since 2023 after a safeguarding inquiry by the Football Association. The women’s team were not aware of the restrictions imposed on Sullivan. It is understood this followed the FA receiving a complaint about a historical allegation dating back to the 198os, which Sullivan has denied.Kretinsky and Gold said: “We were deeply concerned by the revelations made by The Times and Panorama this week and our thoughts go out to those women who have fought so hard to make their voices heard. Any abuse of power is abhorrent, and it takes great courage and determination to speak up against it.“As shareholders and directors of West Ham, our focus is now firmly on protecting the future of this football club. Our goal is to stabilise West Ham United, retain as many of our key players as possible and, under the management of Nuno Espírito Santo, secure an immediate return to the Premier League. We are also committed to engaging with our fans and all business partners to build a stronger future for our club. We have already taken concrete steps toward this goal.“As such, we have reached agreement on the key terms of a share purchase transaction between the Gold family and 1890 Holdings, which, subject to other shareholders’ pre-emption rights and necessary approvals, would make 1890 Holdings (part of the broader group EP) the largest shareholder in West Ham with an approximately 43% stake. As the largest shareholder, group EP will be able to provide the additional financing the club needs.”

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Tara Warren of the Independent Football Regulator was an executive director at West Ham until DecemberA nonexecutive director of the Independent Football Regulator will not be involved in the inquiry into allegations of sexual misconduct against David Sullivan to avoid a conflict of interest over her links to West Ham.Tara Warren was an executive director of West Ham United and the club’s women’s team before joining the football regulator.Sullivan announced his resignation as a director and co-chair of West Ham last Saturday, before the publication of a joint investigation in which seven women accused him of abusing his power and preying on them for sex, in claims that date back to the 1980s and 1990s.However, the 77-year-old remains the club’s largest shareholder, with a 38.8% stake, and the regulator is seeking clarity around the situation before launching a potential investigation. English football’s regulatory body has called the allegations “extremely serious” and has been given statutory powers to force a club owner to divest their shares should they be deemed unsuitable.Sullivan has faced restrictions on his contact with West Ham’s women and youth teams since 2023 because of a safeguarding investigation by the Football Association. He has described the restriction as “meaningless and did not amount to a ban” and that he accepted it “for a quiet life”.West Ham issued a statement on Thursday saying that the safeguarding measures followed the club’s safeguarding policy, as agreed with the FA and the local authority. The club added that “only a very limited number of West Ham United employees were informed of these measures”. The Guardian reported this week that the women’s team were now aware of the restrictions imposed on Sullivan.Warren, who left the club last December, was appointed as a director of the women’s team in February 2023. She joined West Ham as a marketing director in 2009 and became an executive director in 2014. Warren was a close ally of Karren Brady, who stepped down as West Ham’s vice-chair in April.Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, appointed Warren as one of five non-executive directors of the regulator in February. The Guardian asked the Independent Football Regulator and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport about a potential conflict of interest and if Warren’s previous links with West Ham would see her recused from any investigation into Sullivan.A spokesperson for the regulator said: “The IFR has robust policies and processes in place to ensure any interests that may conflict with the responsibilities of board members are known and managed accordingly. Where a board member does have a conflict or perceived conflict of interest, they will be recused from any decision making role relating to the matter.”Warren denies being aware of the allegations made against Sullivan before their publication this week. Through his lawyers, Sullivan has denied the allegations against him.Sullivan is believed to be open to selling his stake. Daniel Kretinsky, West Ham’s second largest shareholder, is interested in taking a majority stake. The Czech billionaire could do so by buying the Gold family’s 25% stake.