David Sullivan has resigned as West Ham joint-chair and has vowed to sue the BBC ahead of the ‘impending publication of serious historic allegations’.
The 77-year-old, who owns a 38.8 per cent stake in West Ham and has been in charge of the club for 16 years, has faced constant pressure from Hammers supporters to step down before the team were relegated from the Premier League last month.
Sullivan, who made his fortune from pornography, claims he is now facing ‘a small number of improper conduct claims’ after meeting ‘thousands of women’ in the adult industry.
A statement from West Ham on Saturday read: ‘West Ham United can confirm that Joint-Chair David Sullivan has stepped down from his position with immediate effect.
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‘Mr Sullivan has also resigned as a director of both WH Holding Limited and West Ham United Football Club, having been made aware of the impending publication of serious historic allegations.
‘It is understood none of the allegations relate to West Ham United or any of its operations.
‘Through his own legal representatives Mr Sullivan denies any illegal conduct and has taken the decision to step down in order to avoid disruption to the Club while he addresses the matter privately.
‘Interim Chief Executive Officer Karim Virani, reporting into the current Board of Directors, will continue to be...
David Sullivan announced Saturday he had stepped down from his role as joint-chair of West Ham with immediate effect. The 77-year-old is leaving his role of 16 years to fight "false allegations" a...