The American investors close to taking control of Sunderland are thought to have recognised the potential of the club from the Netflix documentary that followed their struggles in 2017-18.

The group from MSD Partners — Glenn Fuhrman, John Phelan and Robert Platek — will take a controlling share in the Sky Bet League One club from Stewart Donald, who will remain on the board with a reduced stake. Michael Dell, who founded Dell Technologies and is said to be worth $30.7 billion (£25 billion), will be a passive minority investor.

Sunderland were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2016-17 campaign and fell another tier the following season, when the events were captured in the Netflix documentary Sunderland ’Til I Die.