Gold, Sullivan bids for West Ham recede
Published:Wednesday | December 16, 2009 | 1:14 PM
The chances of David Gold and David Sullivan succeeding with their bid for West Ham have receded after the Icelandic bank controlling the Premier League club had its debt repayments frozen until September.
The former Birmingham owners reportedly offered 50 million pounds for the troubled east London club, but Straumur can now afford to hold out for a better offer.
Straumur-Burdaras Investment Bank said in a statement today that the District Court of Reykjavik had granted it an extension of the moratorium on repayments until September 10, 2010.
Straumur, which is owned by the Icelandic government, has owned 70 per cent of West Ham\'s holding company since June. It prevented West Ham going bankrupt by taking over debts of previous owner, Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson.
West Ham are 19th in the 20-team Premier League, in the three-team relegation zone after being hit by Gudmundsson\'s bankruptcy and collapse of the company that sponsored its shirts.