Private company

Vodafone UK

Logo: Vodafone Group, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons4

British telecommunications company

Vodafone Limited, trading as Vodafone UK, is a British telecommunications company, owned since May 2025 by VodafoneThree, a subsidiary of Vodafone Group. The country's first cellular phone call was made on the Vodafone network in 1985, and the world's first SMS text message in 1992.2 It was founded by Racal.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 20, 2026.

Overview

Jan 7, 1980Founded1
  • Industrytelecommunications industry1
  • HeadquartersNewbury1
  • Founded inNewbury1
  • Websitewww.vodafone.co.uk
  • Legal formprivate company limited by shares1
  • LEI213800XCXOXMW1AFMJ643
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusIssued and current3
  • Registered addressVODAFONE HOUSE, RG14 2FN Newbury, United Kingdom3
  • Registered withCompanies House, 014715873

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Abandoned Vodafone shop, Commercial Street, Leeds (11th April 2011)
Photo: Mtaylor848, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons5

Vodafone Limited, trading as Vodafone UK, is a British telecommunications company, owned since May 2025 by VodafoneThree, a subsidiary of Vodafone Group. The country's first cellular phone call was made on the Vodafone network in 1985, and the world's first SMS text message in 1992.2

Corporate structure

Vodafone UK is part of a group headed by Vodafone. 126 entities, 31 countries on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.

What it owns

What Vodafone UK reports owning in its annual reports to the SEC: buildings, land and equipment, real estate and locations, investments, intangible assets and inventory, at the end of its latest fiscal year and a year before.

Stakes and holdings (Wikidata)

Things Wikidata records the company as owning, with the share when stated.1

The story

Founded by Racal on Jan 7, 1980, in Newbury.1

Products and brands

  • landline telephone
  • mobile telephony

Listed on Wikidata.1

Subsidiaries and ownership

Parent company

Owners

Also owns

From Wikidata.1

Acquisitions

  1. Succeeded by VodafoneThree1

Timeline

  1. May 31, 2025Dissolved Dissolved1
  2. Jan 29, 2014Parent Directly consolidated by Vodafone3
  3. 1991Renamed Name changed to Vodafone Ltd1
  4. 1984Renamed Name changed to Racal-Vodafone Ltd1
  5. 1983Renamed Name changed to Racal-Millicom (Operating) Ltd1
  6. Jan 7, 1980Founded Founded in Newbury1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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