Essex Police review new information on West Ham co-owner David Sullivan

Essex Police said they had received new information about West Ham co-owner David Sullivan and that enquiries were under way.

The contact followed a joint BBC Panorama and Times investigation published on Monday that reported multiple women had accused Sullivan of sexually exploitative and predatory behaviour dating back to the 1980s. Sullivan has categorically denied the allegations.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy held urgent fact-finding meetings with the Football Association and West Ham after the BBC reported that Sullivan had been barred from contact with the club’s women’s and youth teams over safeguarding concerns.

The restrictions had been in place for three years after a historic allegation was raised with the FA in 2023. They had not been made public, and Sullivan continued to attend men’s first-team matches.

In a statement on Wednesday, Sullivan said he had never met any academy or women’s team players one-to-one during his 16 years at the club. He said the complaint had nothing to do with his time in football and that it never happened. He described the agreement as a meaningless restriction that did not affect his work and said it was inaccurate to call it a disciplinary ban.

Nandy called for a full and urgent explanation of how the allegations had been handled. She met West Ham and the FA on Wednesday to seek answers on the club’s response to the safeguarding concerns.

West Ham is understood to have told Nandy it remained confident in its safeguarding measures. Boyle Sports, one of the club’s main sponsors, said it had not been informed of the restrictions and was extremely concerned at the serious nature of the allegations. The company said it supported the Independent Football Regulator’s urgent review.

The BBC and Times investigation also reported that eight women had made disclosures to police about Sullivan’s conduct. None of the cases have resulted in charges.

Sullivan, 77, had been joint chairman for 16 years and became the club’s largest shareholder after the death of his business partner David Gold in January 2023. He resigned on Saturday, saying he wanted to focus on fighting what he called factually incorrect and entirely false allegations concerning his personal life.