Stronger Youth Brands, a youth sports and enrichment platform, has announced the acquisition of Little Kickers, an international franchisor of youth soccer programs based in the U.K.
Stronger Youth Brands provides developmentally appropriate and character growth experiences in partnership with childcare centers, schools and other public locations. The company, backed by Susquehanna Private Capital (SPC), a middle-market private equity firm, was launched in January 2022 with SPC’s platform investment in Soccer Shots, a leading youth soccer franchisor.
Established in 2002 by founder and chairman, Christine Kelly, and led by CEO, Alan Kennedy, Little Kickers currently operates in 340 territories across the U.K., Canada, Australia and other countries. This acquisition creates the largest global franchised youth soccer platform, with over 400 franchisees and 600 territories across 30 countries.
Justin Bredeman, CEO of Soccer Shots, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Little Kickers into our growing family of leading youth enrichment franchisors. Christine, Alan and the Little Kickers team have built an outstanding, loyal franchise system with a primary focus on creating a healthy growth experience for every child through sports, fun and developmentally appropriate curriculum. We look forward to leveraging their scale and expertise as we continue to expand Stronger Youth Brands.”
Little Kickers will continue to operate as a standalone brand and gain access to additional resources to further its growth trajectory as part of Stronger Youth Brands.
Christine shared: “We are pleased to join Stronger Youth Brands, whose impressive growth in franchised sports programs and devotion to youth enrichment are powerful complements to Little Kickers. We have known the Soccer Shots team for years and share a common ethos. We are confident that Little Kickers will continue to thrive and further its legacy as part of the platform.”
“Stronger Youth Brands shares our deep-seated belief in the power of harnessing creative, high energy, and age-appropriate enrichment to help develop a child’s social, emotional and cognitive skills. We are eager to watch both brands combine their resources to further build out youth enrichment programs geared towards this important mission,” added Alan.
