West Ham United in discussions with new shirt sponsor after Alpari collapse

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jan/16/west-ham-united-shirt-sponsor-alpari

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West Ham United are in “advanced discussions” with potential new shirt sponsors after their main commercial backer went bust for the second time in six years.

The online foreign exchange broker Alpari entered insolvency on Friday morning as a result of the Swiss National Bank’s shock move to decouple from the euro, causing investors to lose out and sustain heavy losses that exceeded their equity.

West Ham are in the second year of a three-year deal with the company, which also lends its name to one of the stands at Upton Park, and are believed to be owed around £4m on a contract worth around £3m per season.

In a statement West Ham said it was “saddened” by the news but stressed that it would have “no impact” on its finances. “The club remains in a strong financial position and just last month published accounts showing record revenues and a group profit of £10.3m before tax,” it said.

“The club has received huge interest and is already in advanced discussions with potential new shirt sponsors for next year.”

Given good form this season and the move to the Olympic Stadium for the 2016-17 campaign, the club is believed to be hopeful it can improve on the current deal. It remains to be seen whether they will continue to play with the Alpari logo on their shirts.

In 2008, when West Ham were forced to abandon a £4m-a-year deal with the travel company XL at the height of Iceland’s financial crisis, they covered the sponsor’s logo with squad numbers until a replacement was found.