Football League World
·19 September 2024
Football League World
·19 September 2024
The Pilgrims chief has been in charge of the club for the past six years
Since Simon Hallett became the majority shareholder of Plymouth Argyle in 2018, the club has gone from strength to strength both on and off the pitch.
While the playing staff have done the business at Home Park with promotion to the Championship secured in the 2022/23 campaign, there has also been considerable investment into off-field facilities during his time with the Pilgrims.
While the training facilities continue to improve, and the match day experience gets better for the everyday fan, the refurbishment of the Mayflower Stand at the Theatre of Greens has also revolutionised the club.
The lifelong Argyle fan has worked wonders in his six-year association with the club, and continues to operate with a pragmatic, sustainable approach, unlike a lot of other owners in the country.
With that in mind, we took a look at just how his wealth compares to the riches of the Premier League, where the big bucks are bandied about like no tomorrow.
A £3.25 million investment in Argyle saw Hallett become majority shareholder of the football club back in 2018, which saw the American-based businessman secure 64% of the Greens.
That stake rose to 87% in July of last year, as he agreed to by a further 3.3million shares from outgoing investors Argyle Green LLC.
While his dedication to the football club he has always supported is clear for all to see, the 69-year-old has long been looking for extra investment in the club to help him with their plan of competing at the top end of the Championship in years to come.
The Pilgrims chief has set out a plan to be a top-six second tier club that has Premier League aspirations by 2028, and with his net worth reported to be around the £66 million mark, there will likely need to be extra investment from other sources in years to come if they are to achieve that goal.
If that estimation on Hallett’s fortune is true, the Argyle owner has some way to go to be anywhere near the least rich owner in the top flight, with Brentford’s Matthew Benham said to be worth a reported £216.3 million, according to GiveMeSport.
Even by Premier League standards, the Bees owner is small fry, with Nottingham Forest chief Evangelos Marinakis the only other owner who doesn’t have a fortune worth ten-figures, with the Greek tycoon’s wealth measured at £479 million.
The likes of Tony Bloom at Brighton and Hove Albion, William P.Foley at Bournemouth and Farhad Moshiri at Everton are all owners that have billions in their wallets, but it is when you get into the top five in the division that things start to get really serious.
While Premier League new boys Ipswich Town sit just outside that bracket with Gamechanger 20Ltd worth £10.8 billion, Todd Boehly at Chelsea and the Abu Dhabi Group who own Manchester City can claim £12.21 billion and £12.9 billion in net worth respectively.
Aston Villa owners Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris are net on the list with £13.8 billion, while Manchester United have the funds of the Glazer family and Sir Jim Ratcliffe [pictured] to call upon, with the pair said to be worth a combined £19.2 billion.
But none of that comes remotely close to the wealth of Newcastle United at this moment in time, with the Saudi Public Investment fund and their investors said to be worth a whopping £478 billion, which is enough to make the eyes water.