West Ham Relegated with No Clear Leadership, Mounting Structural Debt

David Sullivan stepped down as Joint-Chair and Baroness Karren Brady departed West Ham United following the club's Premier League relegation. The double exit leaves the board without confirmed successors. Critically, West Ham carries top-tier wage costs, a stadium lease structured around Premier League income, and an aging shareholder (Sullivan) retaining majority equity but no executive role. Championship recovery requires rapid governance clarity; the pattern from Birmingham City and Bolton suggests this governance drift compounds survival difficulty.