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Miami-based 777's £550 million (around $685 million) offer for English Premier League soccer team Everton FC has been accepted as the PE firm looks to add another team to its multi-club ownership (MCO) portfolio.

If the deal goes through, both the English Premier League and France's Ligue 1 would have 10 private market investor-backed teams, according to PitchBook data.  
The MCO model has been controversial due to well-funded backers pushing the boundaries on rules designed to limit how much clubs can spend on their players. A recent example is Premier League club Chelsea, which is backed by Clearlake Capital and its founder, Todd Boehly. Since Chelsea was taken over by Clearlake Capital, it has spent over $1 billion on players.

Chelsea appeared to be in luck when teams in Saudi Arabia bought unwanted players at high prices, although the teams all had Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund as a major shareholder. The sovereign wealth fund, which owns the Premier League's Newcastle United, is also an investor in Clearlake.

Everton's buyer already has interests in clubs across the world, including three in Europe: Germany's Hertha Berlin, Spain's Sevilla FC and Italian club Genoa.

Everton owner Farhad Moshiri has been under increasing pressure to turn the fortunes of the club around for some time. Since he became the majority shareholder in 2018, the club has narrowly avoided relegation twice, and it hasn't had a win this season. Moshiri told Everton fans in an open letter: "The days of an owner/benefactor are seemingly out of reach for most and the biggest clubs are now typically owned by well-resourced PE firms."

777, which has expressed interest in buying underperforming teams, has been in talks with Moshiri as early as May. Everton has recorded net losses for the last five years, totaling £430 million.

The deal is no certainty as the Premier League has raised the standards for prospective owners of soccer teams, banning anyone with criminal convictions or bans from sporting events. The UK's Financial Conduct Authority and the Football Association have added to the increased scrutiny with measures to show financial sustainability of any proposed takeover.

For the 777 deal to go ahead as planned by the end of the year, the firm will have to show proof of funding. This might be difficult because 777 recently urged investors in another of its clubs, Genoa, to fund the team's training facility.

Featured image of Everton's Arnaut Danjuma by Mark Leech/Getty Images

This article originally appeared on PitchBook News