How wealthy the Plymouth Argyle owner is compared to the EFL's richest clubs | OneFootball

The Pilgrims chief has been vocal about his desire for extra investment in the past

Since becoming majority shareholder of Plymouth Argyle in 2018, Simon Hallett has taken the Pilgrims from strength to strength on and off the field.

The Greens have earned promotion out of League Two and League One over the past six-and-a-half years, and have also benefited from investment in their infrastructure, with work starting on the brand new Foulston Park training complex in the city, which is set to majorly improve the facilities available to the playing staff.

Hallett has outlined plans to try and make Argyle a competitive top-half Championship club in the future with Premier League aspirations, but with a budget a fraction of a number of those in the second tier, he could well have his work cut out in that regard.

It will come as no surprise that the boyhood Argyle fan’s wealth is nothing like those who own the sides competing at the top of the division, and here we take a look at just what he is up against.

How Plymouth Argyle owner Simon Hallett made his fortune, net worth

Hallett’s net worth is reported to be around the £66 million mark, which is modest in terms of Championship football club owners.

As a result, the Greens have prided themselves on a sustainable approach in recent years, and have often been one of the only clubs in the EFL to make a profit, as they never spend what they can’t afford.

The Argyle chief has been open about the fact that the search for investment into the football club continues, with an update in December last year stating that the EFL had begun an initial approval process over a potential new investor.

As yet, nothing has been announced on that front, with the local lad done good still providing the funds to the club he loves so much, having earned his millions over in America.

Having studied Philosophy, Politics and Economic at Oxford University in the 1970s, Hallett spent time at Jardine Fleming Investment Management in Hong Kong, whom he helped grow into the state’s biggest asset manager, before JPMorgan Chase acquired the company in 2000.

The Argyle owner really made his mark at American company Harding Loevner as Global Equity Portfolio Manager. With over 30 years with a business that has over $80 billion in equities, he worked his way up to become Vice President of the company, which is said to have stakes in global companies such as PayPal and Facebook.

After investing £3.25 million into Argyle to claim 64% of the shares in 2018, Hallett has since gone on to increase his ownership to 87%, as he bought a further 3.3 million shares from outgoing investors Argyle Green LLC in July 2023.

Simon Hallett wealth compared to Championship’s richest owners

While a man worth £66 million likely puts you in the top 1% worldwide, it doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface in terms of football club ownership, with a number of billionaires owning clubs in England’s second tier.

Queens Park Rangers are said to have the richest owners in the division, with Ruben Gnanalingam the majority shareholder, along with Richard Reilly and Lakshmi Mittal as minority shareholders, with the trio having a combined wealth of over £14 billion.

The likes of Blackburn Rovers’ Venky’s group and Bristol City’s Stephen Lansdown are also worth over a billion, as well as the Coates family who own Stoke City.

Denise DeBartolo York and 49ers Enterprises are also on the Championship rich list, with the Leeds United owners aid to be worth over £4.5 billion.

In terms of comparable wealth, West Bromwich Albion’s owner Shilen Patel is said to be worth £79.5 million, while Burnley’s Alan Pace ‘only’ has £190 million in his bank account, which some Championship owners would consider pocket change.

In a nutshell, it only goes to prove what a job Argyle have on their hands just to stay in the second tier each season, never mind stay competitive in it.

With Miron Muslic at the helm they will be hoping they can remain at the top rung of the EFL for another season, and prove those wrong that say money buys success, as they continue to fly the flag for a sustainable way of succeeding as a football club.