West Ham United

West Ham United are a club that has spent the better part of a century promising that the good times are just around the corner, and the fact that their supporters keep believing them is either a testament to extraordinary loyalty or a case study in collective delusion. The Hammers are the club of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, and Martin Peters — three men who won England the 1966 World Cup — and that heritage has been both a blessing and a burden ever since. The motto, “Fortune Always Hides,” is less a statement of philosophy than a brutally accurate description of what it means to follow this club.

Graham Potter’s appointment as manager brought a new tactical approach to the London Stadium, and the early verdict is that his progressive, possession-based football is a better fit for the club’s aspirations than the pragmatic approach of his predecessors. Potter made his name at Brighton, and if he can replicate even half of that success in east London, West Ham fans will build him a statue. The move from the Boleyn Ground to the 62,500-capacity London Stadium in 2016 remains controversial — the converted athletics stadium has never quite captured the raw intensity of Upton Park — but the increased revenue and profile are undeniable.

Australian fans have a legitimate connection through Lucas Neill, who captained the club in the Premier League with the kind of combative spirit that Australians instinctively admire. West Ham’s working-class identity and refusal to take themselves too seriously make them the most honest club in London.

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The 2025-26 season is Potter’s chance to prove that West Ham’s Conference League triumph in 2022-23 under David Moyes was not the ceiling but the foundation. The London Stadium generates significant matchday revenue, the squad has received ongoing investment, and the expectation is a return to European competition. Whether Potter can impose consistency on a club that has historically veered between brilliance and bafflement will define his tenure. With 62,500 seats, a passionate if occasionally exasperated fanbase, and the financial resources to compete, West Ham have no excuse not to be challenging for the top half. The only question is whether they have the nerve to match their ambition with sustained execution.

VS — Chief sports columnist, australiafootball.com