WEST HAM UNITED'S chances of moving to the Olympic Stadium after it has staged the 2012 Games appear to have suffered a major setback today.

 

The Premiership club's new owner Eggert Magnusson has previously described the prospect of leaving Upton Park for the showpiece venue as a "dream" but Sebastian Coe, the LOCOG chairman, has suggested that the stadium will not be enough for West Ham.

Magnusson would appear to have no objection to the stadium retaining track and field facilities - probably with removable seats - but a reduction in the capacity to 25,000 is likely to put the Hammers off. The club can currently seat 35,303 at their current home.

Coe told BBC News24: "We are currently waiting for the final conclusions of a report but we do know that at Games time it will be 80,000 and its legacy will be 25,000. It will have 25,000 seats."

Coe would not comment specifically on West Ham but insisted that the primary function of the stadium after it is downsized to avoid becoming a white elephant will be for athletics.

He added: "We will wait for the final presentation of the report and I am not going to speculate.

"We have always made it clear we will go forward with track and field facilities but we will encourage other sports to become involved. It will have very important community use."