EPL club West Ham United have "denied reports that they are the subject of a takeover bid by Red Bull," according to James Benge of the London EVENING STANDARD. Benge notes club ownership "have not received any contact from potential suitors and are not minded to sell." West Ham Owners David Gold and David Sullivan invested $129M (all figures $U.S.) to acquire the club in '10 but have since "seen the value of West Ham increase dramatically, at least partly due to the move to the former Olympic Stadium at the start of the season." That has given West Ham the "third largest attendance" in the EPL, and it seems likely the club’s $10.4M operating profit from '15 will "rise significantly in the coming years" (London EVENING STANDARD, 12/27). In London, Vikki Orvice noted Red Bull, one of the biggest global sponsors of the sport, see West Ham's new home the Olympic Stadium as "central to their branding and marketing ethos which has caused controversy in Germany." Red Bull first bought a football club in '05, taking over Austrian club SV Salzburg. The company then bought the N.Y. MetroStars the following year and "rebranded them" as the Red Bulls. In '07, Red Bull "took over German fifth division side SSV Markranstadt and renamed them Red Bull Leipzig," who have since been promoted to the Bundesliga. Orvice noted Red Bull is "targeting West Ham because of its location in the capital and iconic venue." The stadium was re-branded the London Stadium for football when West Ham "moved there this summer with a view to eventually selling-off naming rights." Under UEFA rules Red Bull "could not fully own another European club in case they draw Salzburg or Leipzig in the Champions or Europa League." However, they can "become major shareholders, bankrolling ambitious recruitment drives and expansions through extravagant shirt sponsorship deals, stadium renaming deals and a change in the club’s name to include their own" (THE SUN, 12/26).
