Kaizen Gaming Co-Founder and CEO George Daskalakis is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire a minority stake in UK Championship side Bristol City FC.
Indeed, negotiations are ongoing between Daskalakis and the club's current owner, Steve Lansdown, who has been the long-term majority stake owner of the franchise. Sources suggest that Daskalakis is currently working with a potential co-investor in Sandford Loudon of Oakvale Capital. The terms of the deal remain unspecified, with valuations speculative and the potential for the deal to mature towards a majority stake unconfirmed.
However, Kaizen of course maintains close ties to football on a broader scale, with its Betano brand being a primary sponsor for footballing outfits all over the planet, having brokered a new sponsorship partnership with FC Porto just last month.
Closer to this latest deal, Betano was also Premier League side Aston Villa's front-of-shirt sponsor throughout the last footballing season and is the current training kit sponsor of Tottenham Hotspur. More broadly, the brand was also FIFA's official betting partner at the 2026 World Cup and acted in a similar capacity with UEFA during Euro 2024.
Bristol City FC, known as The Robins, have had a Championship long stay under the 30-year ownership of Lansdown, who has reportedly invested around £280m ($382m) into the club over the years – including donating a £47.2m sum towards the refurbishment of the side's home stadium, Ashton Gate, in 2009.
This latest development comes amid a flurry of investment and sponsorship deals from betting firms with Championship sides in the UK, following the advent of a front-of-shirt sponsorship ban between gambling companies and Premier League clubs from the beginning of the 2026/27 season next weekend.
Bristol City's 2026/27 Championship campaign began with a loss to Millwall FC on 15 August 2026
