West Ham's billionaire owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson looks increasingly likely to sell the club after it emerged that his main business interest in Iceland is on the verge of collapse.

Gudmundsson bought West Ham for £85million two years ago and has since invested a further £30m in the Premier League club.

But he has run into financial difficulties in his homeland cuminating in reports today that one of his key companies, Samson Holdings, has filed for bankruptcy.

The move follows a series of blows to have hit Gudmundsson since Iceland went into economic meltdown in the wake of the credit crunch. Another of Gudmundsson's vehicles, Elmskip, was a backer of West Ham's sponsors, the travel company XL, which went into administration in September.

This was followed by the collapse of Icelandic bank Landsbanki, in which Gudmundsson held a 45 per cent shareholding,

The 67-year-old's advisers had previously insisted the troubles would have no impact on his West Ham investment but that stance has now changed.

One buyer has already shown interest and it now seems a matter of time before the club is sold.

Despite the global financial crisis, West Ham are still an attractive proposition. They have a sizeable fanbase, a celebrated former player, Gianfranco Zola, as manager and a London location.

Also, West Ham remain on a firm financial footing because Gudmundsson did not subject it to heavy debts when he bought the club.