West Ham face relegation less than three years after European glory

West Ham’s march from European champions to the edge of relegation has become one of English football’s sharpest institutional declines. In Prague on 7 June 2023, David Moyes’s side beat Fiorentina 2-1 to win the Europa Conference League, claiming West Ham’s first European title in 58 years and their first major trophy since the FA Cup in 1980. Less than three years later, the club was fighting for its Premier League survival.

The damage was laid bare on 17 May 2026, when West Ham lost 3-1 at Newcastle United and the Premier League said the relegation battle had become a straight two-way contest between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United. Tottenham were two points clear in 17th and 13 goals better off on goal difference, leaving West Ham 18th and needing help to stay up. West Ham will be relegated on Tuesday if Tottenham beat Chelsea.

The collapse points to a club that never found a stable footballing structure after its high point in Prague. Julen Lopetegui lasted seven months before being sacked, and Graham Potter was appointed on 9 January 2025 on a contract reported to run until 2027. Potter’s arrival did not halt the slide, and his exit later in 2025 underlined how quickly the manager’s office became a revolving door rather than a source of authority. In the background, the criticism has focused on recruitment and a squad that has too often lacked consistency and resilience when results turned.

The wider crisis has now reached the boardroom. Karren Brady’s departure on 21 April 2026 left David Sullivan and Daniel Kretinsky in charge, but not before the West Ham United Fan Advisory Board delivered a blunt verdict on her 16 years as vice-chairman, calling her legacy “deeply damaging.” The board said supporters had faced rising ticket prices, removed concessions, stadium operation problems and a widening disconnect with the fanbase, while the club posted a financial loss of £104m.

That anger has spilled into the stands. Supporters staged a sit-in protest at the London Stadium after a 3-1 win over Newcastle earlier in the season, and after the latest defeat visiting fans were reported chanting, “You’re not fit to wear the shirt.” For a club that lifted a European trophy in Prague in June 2023, the contrast is brutal: West Ham now face the prospect of relegation because too many of the decisions after glory pushed them backward.