West Ham United's vice-chairwoman Karren Brady has hit back at criticism of the club's deal to occupy the Olympic Stadium, insisting that they should be 'congratulated' for moving into the venue.
Details of the deal between the Hammers and the the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) were finally made public this week amid public pressure for transparency.
The documents revealed that West Ham have paid just £15m of the estimated £270m conversion cost and will pay an annual rent of just £2.5m, with the LLDC funding all ongoing running costs of the stadium, including providing stewards.
"When I read comments from some of the critics I do often find myself asking — what on earth do people want? A derelict site like the Athens Olympic Stadium? Or the Bird Cage stadium in Beijing — now a Segway track? Or would Tottenham's plan of tearing it down have sat better?" Brady wrote in her column for The Sun.
"The fact we have struck a good deal for West Ham, the taxpayer and the community should be a cause for congratulations.
"I saw this week that Barry Hearn claimed his dog could have secured a better deal with West Ham. Well, seeing as he was unable to negotiate any deal at all for Leyton Orient, maybe he should have let his dog do the negotiations for him!"
West Ham will move into the 60,000-seater venue next season.
Neil Wilkes
