London officials say a 2013, 99-year contract with West Ham United is leaving taxpayers around £19m worse off each year, partly because relegation slashed the club's rent to below half of the previous £4.6m. Lyn Garner, chair of London Stadium LLP, told the London Assembly that 2025–26 was especially weak with only two summer concerts. She outlined five measures — from hosting more non-football events to selling naming rights when the club returns to the Premier League — aimed at reducing losses.
London Taxpayers Face £19m Annual Hit From West Ham Stadium Deal
West Ham's relegation leaves taxpayers on the hook for more of its rent [Getty Images]
London taxpayers are shouldering an estimated £19m annual operating loss because of a long-term agreement that grants West Ham United extended tenancy of the London Stadium, officials told a London Assembly committee.
The contract, signed in 2013 by then-mayor Boris Johnson, designates West Ham United Football Club (WHUFC) as the former Olympic venue's long-term tenants. The arrangement runs for 99 years and contains no break clause in favour of City Hall — a point repeatedly criticised by Mayor Sadiq Khan.
One clause in the deal reduces the club's rent in certain circumstances, and following West Ham's relegation from the Premier League last season the club's contribution fell to less than half of the previous £4.6m annual payment. Lyn Garner, chair of London Stadium LLP — the body set up to redevelop and operate the venue — told the Assembly the stadium is on course to record around a £19m operating loss for the year.
Lyn Garner says London LLC has had a "tense" relationship with West Ham [London Assembly]
We are going to finalise the accounts at around a £19m operating loss. This is not unusual. It's been in this ballpark for some time, Garner said.
Garner said 2025–26 had been particularly weak, with only two summer concerts contributing to revenue. Non-football events such as concerts and athletics meets are important income streams for the stadium; this summer has seen an improvement with five concerts and the Soccer Aid charity match.
That's helping with the finances, but of course it's one step forward and two steps back because of the relegation reduction, Garner added.
Garner described the original contract as commercially advantageous to West Ham and acknowledged recurring tensions over contractual interpretation and legal disputes. She said that, in hindsight, she would not agree to the current terms if negotiating today.
Measures Proposed To Reduce Losses
- Move West Ham United Women to the London Stadium at the club's expense, though parties dispute how this interacts with the existing contract and who should pay.
- Seek permission to host more major non-football events. Newham Council currently caps the venue at 10 non-football events per year, compared with up to 50 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
- Refresh the stadium interior by changing seat colours to claret to create a warmer, more intimate atmosphere aligned with the club.
- Develop surrounding land for food, beverage and leisure uses to generate additional commercial income.
- Prepare to market stadium naming rights when the club returns to the Premier League to avoid accepting an underpriced long-term deal while the team is in the Championship.
The committee invited West Ham's interim chief executive Karim Virani and former mayor Boris Johnson to give evidence, but neither attended. Assembly members pressed officers on strategic options to reduce the burden on public funds and on the legal and commercial constraints posed by the existing 2013 agreement.
While short-term event income can help, officials warned that the underlying contractual commitments make it difficult to eliminate the annual deficit without renegotiation or structural changes to how the stadium and its surrounding assets are commercialised.
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