Derby County are under new ownership after it was confirmed last night that Andrew Appleby, president of General Sports and Entertainment (GSE), an American company, will head a new board in a $100 million (about £50 million) takeover.

Adam Pearson, the chairman, will retain a significant role as one of two majority shareholders running the club, while it is thought that Peter Gadsby, Pearson’s predecessor, who stepped down in October to become a director, will remain on a four-man board in a nonexecutive role.

Appleby, 45, will be presented at a press conference at Pride Park this afternoon. Although Derby’s fate in the Barclays Premier League – they lie bottom, 13 points adrift of safety – appears sealed, GSE plans to pump significant money into the club so that Paul Jewell, the manager, can rebuild a squad equipped to challenge for immediate promotion.

Appleby founded GSE in 1998 and has run various American sports franchises, including the Detroit Pistons, three-time NBA champions, the now-defunct Detroit Vipers ice hockey team and the Fort Wayne Wizards minor league baseball outfit.

Pearson has moved to assure supporters, whose faith in the club wavered during John Sleightholme’s reign to 2005, when the club amassed debts of £54 million before Gadsby led them out of receivership 18 months ago, that the new owners are not out for a fast buck.