OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

An archive of news, events and discussion leading up to and post West Ham United's historic move from Upton Park to Stratford in 2016.

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Big George
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OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Big George »

http://gu.com/p/47kpj" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like we didn't go through the small print and the club could be liable for hundreds of millions of pounds. Who'd have thought it?
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by RM6 »

Will voting UKIP help?
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Doc H Ball
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Re: OS to West Ham millions

Post by Doc H Ball »

I've been going on about this for years on the Dead Forum (where this will be bounced) and am regularly told I don't know what I'm talking about.

All those comments about 'veto', '£400m' valuations and being 'the only way we could take the next step up' were pretty stupid.

Enjoy Kaz, I did try warning you.
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by aaronhammer »

The article says that it is the LLDC who may have breached regulations and could face legal challenges for up to 10 years, why would we then have to foot the bill? Sheff Utd are probably now looking into this.
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Faubert's Boot »

Nothing surprises me anymore.
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by HamburgHammer »

We are only the anchor concessionaire who signed a deal offered to us by the LLDC. How could West Ham get in trouble for that ? The LLDC legal eagles said it was legally watertight, that's why the negotiations apparently took ages.

The confidentiality issues look a bit suspicious though. But who in European Union or Court circles would be the right person to determine a fair rent for the OS from an anchor concessionaire who doesn't own the place, but rents it for 25 days a year or so ?
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Believer »

The ironic thing is that had Spurs and Orient etc not made such a song and a dance about our "state aid" resulting in us not being allowed to own the OS, they might have had a case here. As it now stands, we are purely tenants paying an agreed rent to a landlord. Whatever penalties have to be endured will not fall on the tenant if I'm correct in my thinking.

Strikes me that Levy has been on the drink with one of his Fleet St cronies......
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by hammers1954 »

This seems to be a rehash of an old story on a slow news day. When will the media and even some people on this Forum understand that WHUFC are by far not the only people who will benefit from the refurbishment of the OS.

First, there will be UK Athletics who have a 50 year summer concession, Rugby Union will be using it for at least the world cup, rugby league is being played there later this autumn, community events, such as the Newham 10k in July, concerts, possibility of cricket and let's not forget the community running track which is included in the refurbishment ...I could go on and on.

All these users will have the benefit of the expanded hospitality facilities (an executive box will be £5,250 plus VAT for the Diamond League meeting in July) and the new general spectator catering and toilet facilities plus the new roof. If the stadium was going to be retained as a major venue, not reduced to a 25,000 athletics only facility, all these developments were going to be needed. Yes, West Ham are the major concessionaire, but we're not the only one.

Funny how no one raises the very similar deal Man City get from Manchester Council where City lease it for an alleged £3m pa The big difference between City, Real Madrid (where allegations of state aid have been made) is that West Ham will be one of a number of tenants/users who all pay to use the stadium.

Finally, no one ever asks what deal UK Athletics got for their 50 year agreement. They do pay don't they ? Now that would be state aid!
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by HamburgHammer »

Apparently the European Union would in theory be very interested in the Man City deal, but cannot do anything legally against it now as the decision was over ten years ago and can no longer be challenged in court...
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by cockney hammer »

Image




West Ham face compensation risk over state aid for Olympic Stadium refit

Image
http://www.theguardian.com/football/201 ... ic-stadium" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by prophet:marginal »

Bojo: Boff! bog off!

Looks to me like a City Hall round of handbags.
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AM
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by AM »

Well, I will vote for Nigel, just in case!
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Hugh Jargon »

Let's face it...we are west ham..like our dreams...
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by davids cross »

Image

This image is so fake...

We appear to be on the attack.....Image
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by the pink palermo »

Oh dear .Would now be a good time etc etc

First things first .Doc H Ball has posted tirelessly on this specific issue , and in better detail than the Guardian article, for some time .The warning signs have been there for anyone prepared to open their eyes and see them .

Quite simply we have pissed off a lot of other football clubs again and this time instead of it being Sheffield United, Wigan and Fulham , it's Spurs, Orient and Charlton .

Perhaps it's our own unique take on the 92 club ? We'll find other ways of making enemies I'm sure, given enough time .

Now , do I think we will be forced to hand over hundreds of millions . well , no , but I do see a long protracted legal debate , various injunctions at critical moments and a disruptive process that could cost the club in other ways .

It's no shock this story has reignited during an election campaign and on the day the Bond holders get to pick their seats , somebody was always going to ask why a business that receives around £100m just for entering a competition needs to be handed something built by the tax payer at huge expense for almost nothing .

This one will run and run .The 10 year rule is significant .Tottenham will have extracted every penny out of the local authorities , but done it the right way, and will be sat in their new home and just for fun Levy will be raising objections against the LLDC and West Ham .He will be a hero over there just for taking the piss , and we've made it easy for him .


Anyway, this story will reappear the morning after we vacate the Boleyn and the morning we move into the new place , as well as at periodic points along the way .It's going to be a thorn in our side for ever .

For the next 99 years fans of other clubs all over Europe , especially those in the North, will be able to chant "we pay your benefits" at us .
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Georgee Paris »

Ill have a pint of bothered.
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by si_preston_hammer »

aaronhammer wrote:The article says that it is the LLDC who may have breached regulations and could face legal challenges for up to 10 years, why would we then have to foot the bill? Sheff Utd are probably now looking into this.
This was my take on it!!

Or is it that we knew that regulations had been breached and said nothing again?
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by AlfieG »

Both the LLDC and West Ham said they were totally confident the deal was consistent with state aid regulations. Asked by the Guardian whether he was confident the deal complied Johnson said: “They can bog off. It’s totally ridiculous. I can never exclude that some lawyer will come up with some ridiculous interpretation of article 105 of the EU treaty or whatever but I’m as confident as I can be that it isn’t going to be a problem.”

Excellent. So we are totally Screwed then......... Headbanger
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by si_preston_hammer »

davids cross wrote:Image

This image is so fake...

We appear to be on the attack.....Image
Yeah but two offside dc
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Doc H Ball
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Re: OS to cost West Ham millions in EU penalties

Post by Doc H Ball »

hammers1954 wrote:This seems to be a rehash of an old story on a slow news day. When will the media and even some people on this Forum understand that WHUFC are by far not the only people who will benefit...
You don't understand the law though.

UK Athletics are not a private business so completely irrelevant.

There is a consortium of London Assembly MPs, 2 PL Clubs, supporters' groups and legal experts in the field who have a complaint ready to file when the figures are released. Call it a rehash if you want but it's not going away.

Simply put, a business run by 2 multi millionaires stands to see a rise in value of 400% on their own figures for an outlay of £15m. The equation is:

Increase in corporate income + increase in ticket revenue + increase in exposure (shirt sponsor/commercial) = X

Capital outlay + rent + catering + naming rights attributed to Club =X

The two must balance and any shortfall is State Aid. The other parties are irrelevant, it is the calculated profit to a private business from public revenue that counts.

I don't intend to repeat what I've said on the OS forum, but if you think other Clubs are going to shell out half a billion of their own money on stadia and keep schtum when we got 'the deal of the century' (our own VC's words not mine) then think again.
Last edited by Doc H Ball on Tue Apr 21, 2015 8:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
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