Supporter representatives from the Fan Advisory Board met the Club to ask direct questions on behalf of West Ham supporters.
Below is a record of the key issues raised, the responses given by the Club, and the conclusions supporters can reasonably draw from the discussion.
The question we asked
Supporters asked why official attendance figures are always higher than the number of people actually inside the stadium.
The answer given by the Club
The Club confirmed it reports tickets sold rather than turnstile attendance, which they say is standard practice across the Premier League. A senior executive was not aware that the actual number of fans attending matches at London Stadium is about 51-52,000 on average as figures from Newham Council via Freedom of Information requests demonstrate.
What we did not receive
A commitment to publish actual turnstile attendance figures.
What many supporters will hear
Official attendance will continue to reflect ticket sales rather than physical attendance.
Why this matters for supporters
Publishing true attendance figures would help:
Conclusion
Attendance figures will continue to be reported as tickets sold and the Club will continue to tell everyone that it has the second highest attendance in the Premier League which is clearly questionable when one considers the actual attendances for 19 Premier League matches at Liverpool and Arsenal are higher than West Ham United’s attendances for those 19 matches..
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