US investment groups have increasingly used celebrity faces to front their takeovers of English football clubs, with Gareth Bale the latest to be tapped up to full that role
Gareth Bale is in talks to front an American takeover of League One side Plymouth Argyle. The Pilgrims were relegated to the third tier this season following a disastrous reign of Wayne Rooney as manager.
Rooney was sacked in January after winning just four games to be replaced by Miron Muslic. But the Bosnian decided to take over the head coach role at 2.Bundesliga side Schalke after Plymouth’s relegation was confirmed.
Former Watford manager Tom Cleverley is their third boss of the past 12 months and has been tasked with leading them back to the Championship. But Cleverley himself could have a new boss.
Cleverley was appointed by current Argyle chairman Simon Hallett. But Hallett has been looking for fresh investment in the club for the past year, having become the majority shareholder in 2018.
A deal for further investment fell through last month, but the interest of a US-based private equity group is growing. They are now looking to bring in a celebrity face in the form of former Tottenham and Real Madrid star Bale.
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According to the Daily Telegraph, Bale is being lined up by the group eyeing a takeover of Plymouth. Talks between the club and the group are ongoing, with Bale’s involvement an unexpected addition to the story.
The Welshman has no historic connection to the Home Park side. But US groups have increasingly looked to partner with famous faces in any deals to buy clubs operating below the Premier League.
Bale’s former team-mate at Spurs and Madrid, Luka Modric, is involved with Swansea City. NFL legend Tom Brady has invested in Birmingham City, while golfers Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas have bought shares in Leeds United.
It is unclear how Bale has become involved in the project. He won three La Liga titles and five Champions Leagues during his time at Madrid, before retiring in 2023 after a short spell with Los Angeles FC.
Relegation came as a bitter blow for Argyle, with the club finishing three points from safety. Hallett has led significant off-field investment, with the South Coast side redeveloping their Mayflower Grandstander and funding new academy facilities.
Amid the talk over fresh investment, Hallett has pledged to match the level of funding a new group brings in this season. Though he admitted last month that he felt new investment was not forthcoming.
“We have been in talks with a prospective new investor in our club for over a year – those talks led to an application for approval of that investment being lodged with the EFL in February,” he said at the time.
“Unfortunately, negotiations have taken too long and the key information that both we and the EFL required to complete the deal has not been forthcoming. I no longer believe that news of the new investor is imminent.”
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