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Amid the recently published Report and Accounts that caught many West Ham supporters off guard, there remains a sense of confusion. Several of the club’s shareholders are billionaires, and Karren Brady is consistently presented as an investment expert, reinforced by her longstanding role on BBC’s The Apprentice.
A Track Record of Diversified Investment
The core principle of investing is to diversify risk by holding stakes in businesses across different sectors, something Daniel Křetínský has executed extensively.
Through various portfolios, he invests across energy, tourism, media, wholesale, air transport, hospitality, healthcare, real estate and e-commerce.
His stake in Sainsbury’s, held via his VESA Equity vehicle, has been particularly successful despite the supermarket sector’s traditionally low margins. He first bought in during September 2020 with a 3.05% holding, later increasing this to 9.9% in April 2022, making him the company’s second-largest shareholder.
Silent Daniel Kretinsky’s is unlikely put any money into West Ham under the current model
Based on reports suggesting he paid around 190p per share, the rise in Sainsbury’s share price indicates an approximate 84% return on his initial investment. When dividends are included, the total return is closer to 91%.
Royal Mail has been a more volatile venture. Before launching his bid to acquire International Distribution Services, the parent company of Royal Mail, for £3.57bn, his investment vehicle already owned 27.6% of the business.
Energetický, held through his EP Group, sits within the energy and infrastructure sector. As a controlling and majority shareholder, this has historically been a profitable arm of his portfolio and likely a key source of capital for his wider investments.
Sparta Prague, meanwhile, has delivered mixed financial and sporting outcomes.
Beyond these, he holds significant positions in Foot Locker, Macy’s and Metro AG, and owns major media outlets in both the Czech Republic and France.
According to reporting in The Independent, he also owns Heath Hall in Hampstead, purchased for £65m in 2015.
VESA’s stated strategy on its website is to invest in businesses where it believes it can add meaningful value.
EP Group serves as his broader European private investment platform.
The Lingering West Ham Question
His stake in West Ham is held through 1890s Holdings, a sports and investment entity that also includes Sparta Prague.
All of this raises the question of why the “Czech Sphinx” has remained so quiet at West Ham, particularly if the Board were ever to require additional funding through a rights issue.
With Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index estimating his wealth at $11.5bn, the likelihood of him allowing his current holding to be diluted appears extremely low. The question many supporters are asking is not whether he can play a larger role at West Ham, but whether he chooses to.
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