West Ham need to plug hole in their finances

West Ham are currently living beyond their means financially and need to find ways of plugging a hole in their finances or face the consequences of possible sanctions.

The Hammers made an operating profit of £33m last season down from £65m the season before but with a loss in player trading and interest payments last season, the net profit was published at £17m.

In their latest published accounts, West Ham confirmed they spend £89.5m last summer and while that is not all paid up front it has left a sizeable hole in the club finances together with an increased wage bill way beyond the £106.6m reported last season.

Club insiders have hinted that these seasons losses could be between £25m and £30m by May when the club’s financial year ends and the following season could see losses in excess of £40m if nothing is done to stem spending.

Last week West Ham increased the price of Season ticket prices but these increases are only likely to bring in around £3m of revenue per season, a far cry of what is needed to balance the books. The departure of several highly paid players such as Andy Carroll this summer should help trim the wage bill to more manageable levels.

Failure to get a grip on a financially sustainable model for West Ham could see them breaching FFP regulations which could ultimately end up in a transfer ban for the Hammers.