The owners of Premier League team West Ham United are hopeful of raising fresh capital during talks with potential investors in Dubai, ESPN said.
The club's co-owner David Sullivan and Vice-Chairman Karen Brady hope to sell 50 per cent stake in the club for the relegation threatened team, the network reported.
Dubai has flirted with investing in English football before including high-profile teams such as Liverpool Football Club.
ESPNsoccernet broke the story on Tuesday that Sullivan and Brady were in Dubai for high level talks designed to give a club with big East London traditions a much-needed cash injection which would invigorate their potential spending power in the summer.
Sullivan told Soccernet: "I am in Dubai with Karren but I cannot comment further as our talks our strictly confidential. However, it is clear to everyone that West Ham need an injection of cash as when we took over in January it was £110 million (Dh403.9m) in debt and we have been working non-stop and have cut it down to just over £90m."
Sullivan and Brady are spending several days in the Middle East in talks which they hope will lead to an offer for Icelandic group Straumur's 50 per cent shareholding. Sullivan and David Gold paid £52m for a 50 per cent stake in West Ham in January, and part of the agreement gave them the option over the next four years to acquire the remaining 50 per cent.
At the time of the Sullivan/Gold takeover it was made clear they would seek other investors, inviting rival bidder Tony Fernandes, owner of Air Asia, head of the Lotus Formula One team and a lifelong West Ham supporter, to come on board. Fernandes has so far declined to become involved.