Sports Direct has snapped up a 19% stake in Findel, the online specialist and the owner of replica football strip retailer Kitbag.

Shares in Findel, which also runs gift catalogues and an educational supplies business, soared 13% to 228p on speculation that Mike Ashley, the Sports Direct executive deputy chairman, would buy the group or there could be a bidding war for Kitbag.

As the Sports Direct stake was revealed, Findel said it had agreed terms subject to contract with a third party, not Sports Direct, over the sale of Kitbag. James Collins, an analyst at Stifel, said he thought it highly likely that the buyer was from overseas.

News of the stake in Findel, which would have cost Sports Direct about £32m, prompted speculation that Ashley was looking to disrupt the Kitbag deal.

Findel appointed the auditors KPMG last year to help manage the sale of Kitbag, which could be worth about £20m. Sports Direct was among a number of parties that held talks with Findel about buying the replica strip business at the time. But the process was set aside in May when the Findel chairman, David Sugden, said it would be in the best interests of shareholders to develop Kitbag within the group.

Sports Direct did not comment on why it had bought the stake in Findel but Ashley has a history of taking strategic stakes in businesses in an attempt to gain influence over their boards. A source close to the company said: “Sports Direct looks forward to working with the management as a supportive shareholder.”

Earlier this year, his company took out a put option on shares in Debenhams, which gave it a 16.6% stake as Sports Direct negotiated a deal to manage sports goods areas within the department store chain. He also bought stakes in Blacks Leisure and the now-bust JJB Sports. The firm maintains a 10% stake in JD Sports Fashion.

Ashley has previously described such financial plays as part of a wider conversation with the target company. They have rarely led to an outright takeover bid.