West Ham could find themselves playing inside their own stadium with a surround in the navy colour of Spurs if the owners E20 get their way!
Despite the Hammers winning every point at an expert determination on the issues over which the two sides have been at war for months the owners seem set on denying the club a Claret surround preferring Spurs navy.
And a Hammers insider claimed they want £170k extra rent per year from the Hammers to lay a claret surround.
E20 are also looking for sponsorship of the surround but that is believed to clash with Premier League regulations and CandH is currently checking the position out.
A West Ham insider alleged: “If they go ahead with their plan the pitch will 90 per cent Spurs Blue with them paying for it when WHUFC would have paid for it if it was claret . However, E20 want £170k a year rent for that.”
ClaretandHugh wrote to E20 posing questions covering the issue and the health and safety risks of the situation after Phil Jones and Cheik Kouyate had tripped over the carpet last season.
Here’s their response: “We are complying with all of the decisions made through the expert determination process, including supplying a pitch surround in a contrasting colour, and continue to discuss the solutions with West Ham United. We have begun the procurement process for the new pitch surround which will be in place within the next few weeks.
We are not going to comment on private negotiations, however, we wish to protect our commercial rights which involve securing the best deal for all our assets such as the sponsorship potential of the pitch surround.
The safety and security of fans, players, officials and staff at the London Stadium is our priority and the stadium operator, LS185, will ensure that both the pitch-side run-off strip and the pitch surround are safely secured for all matches.”
The Hammers insider added: “They are being unreasonable in our view and to go with navy blue rather than allow us to pay for a claret surround is insensitive in the extreme given they are the Spurs colours.
