Simon Hallett, the owner of Plymouth Argyle, claims he has made a verbal agreement to sell a portion of the team to new investors.

The identity of the investors, their investment amount, and the size of their shareholding have not been disclosed.

Since 2018, Hallett has held the majority stake in Argyle, and he has made it his goal to make the Pilgrims a Championship team that can be sustained.

“We have now reached agreement in principle with a group that will invest in Argyle, and we are in the final stages of due diligence and regulatory approval,” he said in a statement.

“If completed as expected, this transaction will inject new capital into the club in several phases.

“The first phase will involve issuing new equity, diluting my stake and those of other shareholders.

“Subsequent funds will be available through sponsorship deals and convertible loans, drawn at the club’s discretion.

“These loans will have favourable interest rates and will eventually convert to equity, allowing the new investors to take a majority ownership position.”

In August 2022, a group from the United States established Argyle Green LLC and paid £4 million for a 20% share in the club. This is the first significant investment in the team since then.

Many of the investors, however, sold their shares back to Hallett, who at that point held 87% of the club.

Hallett has expressed a strong desire to support both the squad on the pitch and Argyle’s infrastructure.

In addition, he has made investments in first-team training facilities and contributed to the reconstruction of the Mayflower Stand, while a new training complex for the club’s academy is currently being constructed at Brickfields.

After winning League One and guaranteeing their place in the second division on the penultimate day of the previous season, Argyle was promoted back to the Championship in 2023.

However, under head coach Wayne Rooney, who was hired in the summer, they had a difficult season.

Miron Muslic, an Austrian, took over as captain of England when the former captain departed on December 31.

Despite having a strong run of victories in January and February and a historic FA Cup victory over Premier League leaders Liverpool, Argyle has struggled in the last month and is currently six points from safety at the bottom of the Championship.

Even if they are demoted back to League One, Hallett claims the new investors are dedicated to the team.

“Securing new investment has taken longer than we hoped because we have been careful in selecting investors who share our vision for Argyle as a financially sustainable, community-focused club striving for success on the pitch,” added Hallett.

“Despite the increased risk of relegation, our new investors remain committed and the agreements in place will not be affected by a potential drop to League One.

“While awaiting this investment, Argyle Green and I will continue to provide financial support for both squad improvements and infrastructure projects.”

Hallett stated that if Argyle loses this season, their budget will be more than the one that helped them win League One with a club-record 101 points.

“Our success off the pitch has enabled us to diversify and grow revenues to record levels,” he said.

“Should we be relegated, returns on our investments position us well to remain financially strong in League One with the ability to fund a highly competitive first-team squad.

“A League One budget would be considerably in excess of that with which we were promoted in 2023.”