David Sullivan and David Gold, when they took over West Ham last month, were vocal in their ambitions to move from the club’s old home at Upton Park and take up a tenancy in the £537 million Olympic Stadium after the 2012 Games.

London Games chiefs, including Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell and Sebastian Coe, hold firm to their commitment to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and athletics world body, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), to leave London with the legacy of a world-class athletics stadium.

But it seems that original plans to dismantle the Olympic Stadium from its Games-time 80,000 capacity to a 25,000 seater athletics venue could now be set aside to accommodate a prestigious anchor tenant.

"We have made it clear we would explore other sports sharing the stadium," Coe told the IOC at meetings in Vancouver.

"It is sensible to look at other options for income streams and community use."

Much could depend on whether or not West Ham manage to avoid relegation from the Premiership this season, as the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) wants potential buyers or tenants for the venue to submit their plans by the autumn.

Baroness Ford (pictured) is the chairman of OPLC, which is co-owned by the national Government and London’s City Hall.

She wants any potential tenants to foot the bill for re-configuring the venue.

There is already £38 million allowed in the Olympic contingency for after the Games for setting it up in athletics mode.

To adapt the stadium for at least 50,000 football fans, including money-spinning hospitality boxes, and incorporate retractable seating over the athletics track, is estimated to cost around £100 million in total.

The timing of a decision on a football tenant will be crucial later this year for England’s 2018 World Cup bid, which will not be able to include the Olympic Stadium if it is to operate with a capacity of less than 40,000 after 2013.

The venue is already earmarked to stage games in World Cup tournaments of the two rugby codes, union and league, while Britain is also expected to bid to stage European and World Athletics Championships at the stadium in the next decade.

OPLC’s board last week agreed a feasibility plan, which lays out the costs of the stadium’s various options.

"This is a public asset and any use in legacy must show how the promises made in the Olympic bid can be kept and how the stadium can become a lively and valuable part of the Olympic Park," Baroness Ford said.

"We need to demonstrate value for money for the public purse.

"We aim to complete this process and reach a settled position by the end of this year."

Leading those campaigning for the stadium to have a football anchor tenant is Sir Robin Wales, mayor of the Olympic Borough of Newham, and a West Ham season ticket-holder.

He sees such use of the stadium as important for future job opportunities in the neighbourhood.

But crucial in negotiations could be the giant Westfield shopping centre next door to the Olympic Park at Stratford, whose developers and store owners are unlikely to want 50,000 football fans arriving on their doorsteps every fortnight.


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