Andy Gray staggered as Richard Keys shares £20m West Ham United news on air
Andy Gray could not believe what Richard Keys revealed live on air about West Ham United and their London Stadium home.
The pair discussed the Irons during their coverage of the Premier League match against Aston Villa live on beIN Sports 1 [17 August, 4:55pm].
The Hammers’ London Stadium, the host of the match between the sides, became the topic of discussion as Keys dropped a bombshell.
Keys said: “There’s much excitement around the ‘Tax Payers’ Stadium’. £20million it cost London tax payers last season. “
Gray replied: “You’re joking? That can’t be right?”
Keys added: “It really shouldn’t be, but it is. You can’t blame the Hammers.”
West Ham stadium costs the people of London £20m
West Ham became one of the main beneficiaries of the 2012 London Olympic Games when the club moved to the London Stadium from Upton Park in 2016.
The venue was built to showcase the prestigious tournament in London but even now, 12 years after the competition, the London taxpayer is paying for the stadium.
Keys said the Hammers, are not to blame, but of course they are – we are talking about a multi-million-pound organisation benefiting from the public.
Football fans are fiercely loyal to their club, but few would go into their pocket to pay for the stadium. They already pay to follow their side home and away and buy the kits, and other merchandise, all to support the team. This decision laughs in the face of fans across the world.
As a whole, London taxpayers are absorbing a loss of approximately £489,000 per West Ham home match [Sports Business Journal, 8 July].
David Sullivan has flexed his financial muscle this summer in backing Julen Lopetegui in the transfer market.
Many would argue that money could have been put to better use in acquiring the full ownership of the London Stadium and saving the public millions down the line.
In other West Ham news, the Hammers are the favourites to sign Tammy Abraham from AS Roma.
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