West Ham learn if they're favourites to seal Jordan James transfer
West Ham United are said to be involved in a multi-club transfer race for Jordan James.
It does feel as though the Hammers are gearing up for a big final few weeks of the summer transfer window.
Now that Joel Veltman has signed, the proverbial transfer floodgates could be about to open at the London Stadium.
Having lost Freddie Potts and Mateus Fernandes this summer, Nuno Espirito Santo could turn to James in order to bolster his central midfield ranks.
The 22-year-old is currently contracted to French Ligue 1 side Rennes, but he did spend the 2025-26 season on loan in the Championship with Leicester City.
Now the Welsh international could be on his way back to England's second tier this summer, with West Ham touted as a potential option for him.
How likely Jordan James is to sign with West Ham rival
It was reported by transfer journalist Alan Nixon via his Patreon on Sunday that James is wanted by at least four Championship sides.
Middlesbrough, Burnley, Wolves and West Ham were all explicitly named in his report as being the interested quartet, whilst Serie A outfit Atalanta and Premier League side Fulham are also keen.
Nixon claims that Rennes would sell the midfielder for around £10million this summer, and that they are looking for a permanent exit rather than a loan.
And now, responding to some user questions on X late on Sunday evening, Nixon has claimed that "Boro (Middlesbrough) might be the most attractive," when asked if there's a current front-runner in the race for James' signature.
On top of that, he was also asked if he was to put 10p on where James ends up signing this summer, where would his money go?
In response, Nixon wrote: "Probably put seven on Boro", or in other words, handing Kim Hellberg's side a 70 per cent chance of signing James.
But what is James' contract situation like at Rennes, and why might the French side be so keen to sell now despite his superb 2025-26 season with Leicester?
Why James' transfer stock has never been higher
The 2025-26 season wasn't James' big breakout campaign in the Championship, as that came back in 2021-22 with Birmingham City.
However, last term was undoubtedly the best of his career so far, scoring 11 goals and providing four assists in 34 Championship appearances in a relegated Leicester side.
So good was the Welshman last season that he was crowned the EFL Young Player of the Season for 2026, with the all-round midfielder further establishing himself as a talent probably too good for this level.
However, James is only contracted with Rennes until June 2028, meaning that time is starting to run out for the French side if they wish to maximise the fee they'll get for him.
Seemingly not in their Ligue 1 plans, it's no surprise then to see the four big Championship promotion favourites lining up to sign him, as he would instantly boost any of those sides' chances of a Premier League return substantially.