West Ham United's ownership saga could take a new twist after it emerged that Straumur's preferred bidder is an unidentified North American, reports The Guardian. The cash-rich investor, who has other sports interests, has completed due diligence on the club but is as yet undecided over whether to make a formal approach.

Straumur, the Icelandic investment bank which owns West Ham, has had approaches from four verifiable parties: David Gold and David Sullivan, the former Birmingham City owners; the Canary Wharf-based Intermarket Group; the Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes and the unnamed North American.

It is understood that the first three parties have all provided indications of their intention to bid. It is expected that under any of those bids Straumur would retain a minority stake, with the bidders taking control through an injection of working capital.

But Straumur is sticking to its £100m valuation of the club, a price which takes account of football and bank debts in the region of £80m, and it may yet reject all three proposals.

It is to the anonymous bidder's advantage that he is seen as the safest long-term bet by the consortium of five banks who have loaned money to the club.

Those lenders will have as big a say as Straumur in the sale process.