West Ham fan Mark Carlaw has been praised after addressing concerns with the ownership, and reasons for the planned boycott protests.
The Hammers’ recent win over Villa has boosted confidence and hope for the season under Graham Potter, despite a poor start and the international break interrupting momentum.
But fans are seeking an ambitious ownership change after 15 years with current owners, criticising their “just enough to survive” model in the Premier League.
They want leaders showing passion and drive to compete at higher levels (like Aston Villa or Nottingham Forest), not just mid-table, just above avoid relegation finishes.
There were suggestions for David Sullivan to step down as chairman while retaining shares, bringing in professionals to run the club like Man City or Newcastle, amid a disconnect with fans treated as “customers.”
On @talkSPORT this morning to discuss West Ham ownership ⚒ pic.twitter.com/onhZDzLFNH
— mark carlaw (@markcarlaw) September 4, 2025
Alan Brazil: Gabby’s team Villa had a real poor start, West Ham poor start, but that was a big, big win. It’s just a shame. I would imagine for West Ham fans that international duty and two games has come up you you want to keep going now with that enthusiasm and that confidence that that victory should have brought.
Mark: It’s typical isn’t it, it’s the way of football unfortunately you know especially in the top flight but look it is what it is you know I’m certainly taking it we needed it was a much welcome win but I think to be honest we’re not over obviously the result was fantastic but it was a performance you know that that’s what I think is it’s breathed some hope into the season and you know I think it’s a long way to go, of course you can’t get carried away with it, but it’s definitely, it feels like a big moment in our season and hopefully for Graham Potter as well because I certainly think he needed that as well more than anyone.
Alan Brazil: Mark, what about the board then? You want to wipe the slate clean and get someone in with serious money to say, I’ll back you to the hilt? Because I’ve said, said to Gabby, me, West Ham’s a massive club, home and away fans are brilliant especially away from home, know, they travel in the thousands and at home if things are well there’s nothing wrong with the stadium, it’s from things are poor, you seem to be so far away from the pitch, I’ve been there loads of times. What are the West Ham fans looking for? What sort of change?
Mark: Well, I think the reality is what fans would love, let’s be honest, would be new ownership, that would be the desire. It has been a long time now with these owners, we’ve had 15 years now, David Sullivan at the top of the club, so it’s not like they haven’t had time, you know, to put the club where it needs to be now.
Alan Brazil: Where does that matter? Where does the club need to be? You’ve won a European trophy. All right, not Champions League, but where are we talking here? Are you talking about consistently top six?
Mark: To be honest with you, I don’t think actually where we are in the table and what we’re competing for really is the problem. I’m going to be honest with you. I don’t actually think that’s the big desire. think what West Ham fans want to see and have is an ownership that shows the love and compassion and drive to want the club to do well. I think what you’re seeing at moment at West Ham is a model where it’s just about enough. They do just enough just to keep this up. I feel like what the model of the club operating at the moment is, let’s just stay in the Premier League. As long as we tick that box, we’re pretty much happy. And I know that, like you just said, you won a European trophy, you’ve had European football. I don’t really believe that was really the desire from the football club though. I felt that the hiring of David Moyes, don’t get me wrong, David Moyes is fabulous for West Ham, know, and I’ll always be, you know, eternally grateful to him for what he brought to this football club. But I don’t think he was hired on the promise of saying, I’ll you what, we’ll bring him in and he’ll get us into Europe. They brought David Moyes in because he was available and he was cheap and it was an option to keep West Ham in the Premier League. It just so happened that we had a brilliant season under him and it ended up we got Europe, you know?
Gabby: Mark, do you look at owners like my team Aston Villa, when they first come in, they says, listen, we don’t want to just get into Europe. We don’t want to just get into the top four. We want to go win the Premier League. We want to win the Champions League. Is it more you want more owners that want to win everything and not just survive in the Premier League, finish mid table, try and get into Europe?
Mark: Yeah. Yeah. I think, you you look at the likes of yourselves, look at Nottingham Forest. I know that there’s situation with his, you know, with the ownership at the moment. But regardless of that, you know, that’s ambition, you know, that. I think once you’ve got the fans get on board with that, you know, and I think it, that relief into the fan base and you’re all united. At the moment, there’s just such a huge disconnect between the ownership and the fan base. It’s almost like, you know, they use the word customers, which, you know, went down terribly, you know, with the fans. And if things like that, you just think, oh, and to be honest with you, you know what, you know, we talk about ownership and you think, sell the club. But we all know that’s not easy. You know, there’s not many people lining the streets, ready to go and buy Premier League clubs. I think what West Ham fans really want, as effectively a compromise at the moment, it’s for David Sullivan to resign at his post and bring in someone. Now don’t be a chairman anymore, just be a major shareholder. Like Man City operate, like Newcastle do, bring in the best people you can and say, you run our club, you make it where it needs to be. Because let’s be honest, I think it’s well known in football that we’ve got an ownership really that aren’t the best. It’s pretty obvious. So yeah, I think that’s where we are.
Alan Brazil: Keep your chins up don’t worry about me long way to go it’s early doors but that was a big big win Mark big win
As mentioned, the West Ham fan was praised after addressing concerns with the ownership, and reasons for planned protests…
@TheLawless: Absolutely spot on with every point mate. Especially the Moyes thing, been saying for ages they had no idea he would do as well as he did, it was a happy accident.
@kjohno10: That’s the best I’ve heard one of our fans talk on the situation. Dealt with the top 6 question perfectly, it’s always their route to trip fans up. Well done mate ⚒️
@Milkman8971: Completely correct, well articulated and good points. Very refreshing to here someone speak so well on the current situation and speak about how so many of us feel
@burd_steve: Well said Mark… @WestHam we just want to excited by our club and competing week in week out! ⚒️
@coster_ray: Great interview Mark, got your points across eloquently and precisely & nailed it for me 👍
@CatenaccioChris: Well done Mark. Clear, concise and to the point. The more coverage this gets, the more pressure builds on that stooge Sullivan ⚒️
@SavageSlaven: Perfectly put mark! Particularly impressed with how you responded to ‘where do you expect the club to finish’ we don’t really care so long as we feel the board are doing all they can for the club on and off the pitch, 100% effort from board to players and fans will always follow
@JimboWilsonn: Brilliant this from @markcarlaw. Hits the nail right on the head! ⚒️
@DomHart13: Rate this a lot, very well said and spoke a lot better than most of the fans who speak for West Ham on the overlap etc imo
@westhamhour: Really good. Really clear concise and also bringing a solution within the conversation, not just saying to leave. Big respect Mark, and actually thank you TalkSport for letting him put his point across. They quite regularly butt in when people are trying to make a point. 👏
@The_BoleynBoys: Brilliant 👏🏼 And so right, I bang on about competing higher up the table but in reality this is football, no one is entitled to anything, but it’s the complete lack of ambition and most certainly lack of ambition to compete at the top that I will never agree with. #GSBOUT
@vi0letb0nes: Spot on – we’re not entitled to anything, same as every other club. But we should always be aiming for it all. Champions League, winning trophies, beating the best teams. That’s what it’s all about! I miss when we thought we could take on anyone and beat them. We NEED ambition!
West Ham fans to boycott Prem fixture with claim their team will ‘die’ under current ownership
