A group of American investors have withdrawn their bid to takeover the ownership of Sunderland.

The announcement now paves the way for owner Ellis Short to complete the sale with a German consortium.

As reported by Tribalfootball yesterday, television executives - Leo Pearlman, Ben Turner and Gareth Turner – who own Fulwell 73 productions, were contemplating a takeover of the club.

However, the group has now admitted it is not the right time to invest in the club.

A statement read: "As life-long Sunderland supporters, it would be the fulfilment of a dream to be involved in the ownership of the club, to put it back into the hands of the fans and to give the whole of Wearside a team to be proud of.

"Our club is the biggest in the north-east, should be one of the biggest in the country and the Premier League is therefore the only place it belongs.

"We have been so touched and inspired by the reaction from our fellow supporters, who rightly deserve their reputation as the best fans in the world.

"However, due to our other TV and film commitments, now isn't the right time for us to get involved.

"It's where our hearts are and would demand a huge personal commitment, and we wouldn't want to give anything less than our all to the club.

"We owe that to all the other fans for whom, like us, SAFC is such an integral part of their histories and future."