West Ham confirm 'incredible' off-pitch ticket news | OneFootball

The Hammers will be significantly backed by their supporters in the Championship

West Ham United will be playing Championship football for the first time since 2012, with the club's first fixture at the level in 14 years coming with an away trip to newly-relegated rivals, Burnley, at Turf Moor, on Sunday, August 16th.

Normally, after a club has been relegated from the Premier League after such a lengthy period of time in the division, feelings of negativity can be visible for a while afterwards, but that doesn't exactly appear to be the case at the London Stadium.

Following their final-day drop into the second tier on 39 points - the highest number a club has been relegated with in 15 years - Nuno Espírito Santo ended a brief period of uncertainty over his own future by committing to a first full campaign in charge of the East London outfit.

As such, many are already expecting the 52-year-old to end the upcoming season with a second promotion from the Championship to the Premier League as title winners on his CV, having achieved those exact feats with Wolverhampton Wanderers eight years ago with a star-studded squad at Molineux for the division's overall standards.

There has, of course, been intense speculation over the futures of many high-profile names and big earners on the Irons' books, especially after the Championship's record sale of £85m, which came through Mateus Fernandes' exit to Tottenham Hotspur, was confirmed.

However, Hammers fans have now seen their optimism for the new season grow further as club captain, Jarrod Bowen, committed his immediate future to the Championship side amid strong exit talk.

And, it is fair to say that that hasn't been the only good news celebrated by the club.

West Ham confirm latest London Stadium ticket milestone ahead of EFL Championship season

Action Images

The London Stadium will be the largest stadium in this season's Championship by some distance, with the ground boasting a capacity of 62,000.

It is, simply, the largest stadium to have hosted second tier football in the modern era, ahead of Newcastle United's St James' Park, and even though they were relegated last term, West Ham still boasted the Premier League's second-highest average attendance figures behind Manchester United.

In the off-season, Daniel Křetínský revealed that he hopes to move seats in the stadium closer to the pitch and remove the infamous running track around its perimeter to make it feel more suitable for football in terms of a matchday experience, 10 years after the Irons moved in.

And, with the new season less than a month away, it has been confirmed by the club that the milestone of 50,000 season tickets have been sold, which surpasses the number which were acquired by supporters last season.

This is also despite the fact that in some areas of the stadium, a season ticket could still cost as much as £1,200.

West Ham supporters in a buoyant mood as season ticket milestone revealed

Action Images

In three weeks' time, West Ham will host Portsmouth in the Stratford-based ground for the EFL Cup first round, before the first of 23 home games in the Championship sees them take on Charlton Athletic at 3PM on Saturday, August 22nd.

Unsurprisingly, though, the aforementioned news has gone down well with many fans, with one responding: Amazing numbers. Lets hope we don't hear fans blaming tourists next season and embrace the bowl."

Given the off-field changes, another optimistic supporter commented: "This is simply incredible. A new era without the worst owners in the country begins. What a club we could be."

Another fan stated: "Hats off to West Ham . They Believed the fans would come back without having to push the Bowen statement early. The club feels different."

Others are simply believing the upsurge in season ticket sales has come through the departures of David Sullivan and Karren Brady, with one response reading

Rather humorously, another supporter joked that this could be down to the fact there is "no VAR," for Hammers fans this year.