Television presenter and Hartlepool United president Jeff Stelling has appealed for partners to invest in a consortium to take over his boyhood club.
Pools, who are up for sale amid rising financial pressures for current owners HUFC Holdings Limited, are believed to have had interest but no concrete offers.
Stelling and a Teesside businessman are understood to have a fund of £1.2m, but require an additional £600,000 to pay off the club's debt and buy out current owner John Blackledge.
"We can't afford to find ourselves in the same position 12 months from now, so we need sufficient funding in place to guarantee the club's long-term future," Stelling told Sky Sports News.
"Our money is there and waiting if we can find the extra funds. But time is running out. Though it breaks my heart to say it, I don't believe the club can survive much longer. The club needs investment - and it needs it now.
"We have been working hard on this for the past couple of months, but we now feel we need the extra funding within the next week or it may be too late.
"I can't bear the prospect of this club going to the wall. I just hope there are some wealthy individuals or businesses out there that may feel the same. The town would be forever grateful."
Hartlepool survived a winding-up order earlier this month after a fundraising campaign set up by a fan raised in excess of £84,000 and successfully paid off their outstanding tax bill.
Giuseppe Labellarte
