Umbro makes the England kit
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Umbro, the sportswear firm which supplies the kit for the England football team as well as Chelsea and Celtic football clubs, could be sold for up to £300m ($480m).
Doughty Hanson, the private equity firm which owns Umbro, is understood to be weighing up several unsolicited offers for the company ranging between £250m and £300m.
A sale within that price range would generate bumper returns for Doughty Hanson, which bought Umbro in 1999 for about £90m.
Under Doughty Hanson's ownership, Umbro has achieved a near fourfold rise in earnings by outsourcing its manufacturing operations to China and broadening its range of products to include trainers and football boots.
The Cheshire-based firm, led by former professional footballer Peter McGuigan, is currently planning to expand into the US market.
Two months ago, the company was fined about £6m for taking part in an agreement with several other companies to fix the price of replica football shirts.
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