Everton acquired by U.S. private equity firm 777 Partners

(Reuters) - Everton have been sold to 777 Partners, the struggling Premier League club said on Friday, with the U.S. private equity firm taking over from Farhad Moshiri in a deal reportedly worth more than 550 million pounds ($685 million).

The Miami-based investment fund said it had signed an agreement with British-Iranian billionaire Moshiri to acquire his 94.1% stake in the club.

"We are truly humbled by the opportunity to become part of the Everton family as custodians of the club, and consider it a privilege to be able to build on its proud heritage and values," said Josh Wander, founder and managing partner of 777 Partners.

The firm 777 Partners has a number of clubs in its portfolio, including Italian side Genoa and Belgian team Standard Liege, while they also have stakes in LaLiga club Sevilla and Australian A-League side Melbourne Victory.

Moshiri, a former Arsenal shareholder, first bought a 49.9% stake in Everton in 2016. By January 2022, he had increased his stake to 94.1% with a 100 million pounds capital injection.

But despite investing nearly 750 million euros ($799.65 million) in transfers to build the squad since Moshiri's arrival, Everton have slipped out of the top half of the table to fight relegation battles in recent seasons.

Everton narrowly avoided relegation from the top flight in each of the last two seasons and are currently 18th in the standings without a win in four games this season.