Daniel Křetínský is closing in on a major change to his position at West Ham United, but one crucial hurdle remains before his new 46 per cent stake can formally take effect. The Czech billionaire has agreed the transactions needed to become the club’s single largest shareholder, although West Ham have made clear that the process is not yet complete.
West Ham have now publicly acknowledged the agreement, bringing months of uncertainty surrounding Amanda Staveley and the Gold family’s shares close to a conclusion.
However, the club’s wording was deliberately careful.
In their official statement on Křetínský’s agreement, West Ham confirmed that the Czech businessman had reached an agreement to acquire enough shares to become the club’s largest shareholder.
They immediately added that no further comment would be made “until all transactions are complete.”
That is the final hurdle supporters are now waiting for.
Křetínský’s 46 per cent West Ham stake still needs completing
There is an important distinction between an agreed transaction and a completed change of ownership.
Křetínský currently controls 1890s Holdings, which West Ham’s official ownership page still lists as holding 27 per cent.
The same page continues to list David Sullivan at 38.8 per cent, the Gold Family Trust at 25.1 per cent and WHU LLC at eight per cent.
Those figures therefore remain West Ham’s formally published structure for the moment.
Once the transactions are completed, the expected picture is dramatically different.
Křetínský is set to hold 46 per cent, Sullivan approximately 40 per cent, while Tripp Smith’s interest is expected to rise to around 11 per cent. The Times reports that completion is expected by the end of September.
Read West Ham covered the moment Křetínský’s 46 per cent agreement first emerged before the club subsequently confirmed that an agreement had been reached.
It means the hard part appears to be done.
The paperwork and completion process are not.
Křetínský will be West Ham’s largest shareholder, not majority owner
That distinction matters for another reason.
A 46 per cent stake will make Křetínský West Ham’s largest single shareholder, but it will not technically make him the majority shareholder.
A majority holding requires more than 50 per cent.
That has been confused in some coverage of the ownership battle, but West Ham themselves have deliberately described Křetínský as the club’s “single largest shareholder” rather than majority owner.
Our permanently updated guide to who owns West Ham explains the difference between share ownership, board representation and control of the club’s day-to-day operation.
The percentages do not necessarily tell the whole story.
Vanessa Gold has indicated that Křetínský will take a more active role in decision-making once the new structure is established. She will retain a smaller shareholding after relinquishing most of the Gold family’s interest.
That could prove far more important to West Ham’s future than the difference between 46 and 50 per cent.
What happens when the West Ham deal completes?
Completion should finally provide a definitive answer to several questions.
West Ham can formally update their ownership structure, the final distribution of the Gold family shares will become clear and supporters should receive further communication from Křetínský himself.
The Czech billionaire has already said he appreciates the responsibility attached to becoming West Ham’s largest shareholder and intends to communicate further with supporters once the transactions are complete.
That next statement could be particularly significant.
West Ham have undergone enormous change during 2026, with relegation, major boardroom restructuring and a huge overhaul of Nuno Espírito Santo’s playing squad.
Křetínský becoming the most powerful individual shareholder would establish a much clearer figure at the top of that structure.
It would also effectively end the immediate ownership route available to Staveley.
Her consortium had reached an agreement worth around £150million for the Gold family’s 25.1 per cent holding before West Ham’s existing shareholders exercised their pre-emption rights.
The ownership battle therefore appears decided.
But until West Ham confirm that every transaction has completed, supporters should resist describing the new 46 per cent structure as formally finished.
The agreement is done. The ownership transfer is not quite there yet.
