Everton to fall under spell of US - report

English Premiership club Everton will follow its city rival Liverpool FC to become a US-owned football club early in 2016, local reports said.

That is the early 'Christmas present' to greet loyal Everton fans Wednesday after the London Times newspaper carried a report saying a 300 million U.S. dollar deal was being discussed with a US consortium.

The consortium, according to media reports, has been granted a six-week exclusivity period to enable its advisors to study Everton's financial reports and records.

Many Everton fans have been calling for overseas investors to take over the club for years, to provide the injection of funds and investments they need to compete with top clubs such as Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea.

The Liverpool Echo's Everton reporting team has been profiling the two men leading the consortium, John Jay Moores and Charles Noell.

The paper said Moores founded a fledgling computer software company with just 1,500 U.S. dollars in 1980 which, eight years later, was netting sales of 200 million U.S. dollars, with the Echo describing Moores as having a proven track record with money. Estimations put the Texan as being personally worth 730 million U.S. dollars a decade ago, but his value is believed to have significantly grown.

Harvard-educated Charles Noell first became involved with Moores in 1992, when the pair established a successful equity business.

The pair of keen horse breeders also set up racing stable Merreibelle with farms in Ireland, Kentucky and Maryland.

At Goodison Park, Everton officials were keeping tight-lipped about the reports, though there was no official denial that 'things were happening'.

Everton, five times winner of the FA Cup, was formed in 1878 under the name St Domingo's, and were founding members of the famous Football League in 1888 when the name changed to Everton FC. Endit