EPL West Ham "moved one step closer to being handed the keys to the Olympic Stadium on Monday night after resolving the last" of its major issues with London 2012 legacy chiefs, according to Ben Rumsby of the London TELEGRAPH. Several weeks of "intense negotiations between the two parties bore fruit on Monday." The big sticking point was the demand by London Mayor and London Legacy Development Corp. Chair Boris Johnson "for a cut of any profit" if West Ham was sold, something the club is understood to have conceded to." Sources at Upton Park "refused to comment on what had been agreed but there was optimism the approval of the LLDC board would be given, despite there being small hurdles still to clear." An LLDC spokesperson said on Monday night: "Things are going well, but we’re not quite there yet." West Ham was "caught off guard" when Johnson made it clear that he "wanted a cut of any profit" if the club was sold after moving into the stadium. An "agreement in principle was reached over this, and although thrashing out the precise details took longer, West Ham is understood to feel Monday's offer represented fantastic value both for them and the taxpayer" (TELEGRAPH, 2/11).
