Rangers’ “largest sponsorship agreement” holders subject to £2.2bn takeover bid – report

A €2.6 billion (£2.22 billion) acquisition approach has been made for Kindred, the parent company of 32Red and longtime Rangers partners.

Francaise des Jeux (FDJ), the massive French lottery sponsored by the state, is about to close an incredible deal for the

gaming company that is listed in Stockholm.

With Kindred, the parent firm of 32Red, the main sponsor of Rangers shirts, the move will

establish one of the biggest gambling companies in Europe. Moreover, the group owns Unibet.

The Kindred shareholders have “unanimously” advised that the company’s stockholders accept the

FDJ’s all-cash offer, according to an article published in the Financial Times.

FDJ has a monopoly on French lottery services, and as of right now, its foreign revenue share is 6%.

This will increase to a predicted 20% once the group acquires Kindred, enabling it to expand into markets in Scandinavia and Western Europe.

As things stand there is no suggestion of how this might, if at all, impact Rangers but the club have a

long-running and positive partnership with the Swedish gaming company.

A mixture of 32Red and Unibet have been the title sponsor on the Rangers jerseys since 2014,

with Kindred signing the “largest sponsor agreement” in Ibrox history in 2021.

The partnership between Rangers and Kindred has been previously heralded as “one of the longest running in British

football” by the Ibrox club.

Kindred has been a commercial supporter of Rangers Football Club since the Scottish Championship era,

and they are currently in their tenth year as partners.

Bisgrove: ‘We hope 32Red are here for many years to come’

When that last deal with 32Red was struck, Rangers branded it a “multi-year” partnership and it appears we’re now into the third year of it.

As part of the agreement, Kindred would also continue to run Team Talk, a men’s mental health initiative which even

featured on the club’s Europa League Final jerseys in 2022.

James Bisgrove, who was then the club’s Commercial and Marketing Director, was the one who struck the deal,

with the Englishman now promoted to the role of Ibrox CEO.

Speaking 2.5 years ago, Bisgrove made it apparent that he views Kindred as a sponsor.

We wonder if this will alter as a result of the FDJ merger.

“It is great news for the club’s continued commercial growth and represents the largest sponsorship agreements in our 150-

year history that the club and 32Red have agreed to extend the partnership,” stated Bisgrove.

“32Red have supported our club for many years of our journey back to the pinnacle of Scottish football and our historic 55th league title.

“They’ve been part of our journey both on the pitch and in the community and we are grateful for their fantastic support.

They are long-term partners and we hope to continue the successful, winning, relationship for many years to come.”

Kindred – who are one of Europe’s top-five betting providers – are aiming for commercial revenues of £250m for the financial year of 2024.