Companies

JD Sports reports decline in first-half sales and profits

Sep 25, 2026 United Kingdom

The sportswear retailer reported lower sales and profitability in the first half of the 2027 fiscal year. North America was particularly affected by weaker consumer sentiment and negative trends in the footwear sector

“Our Group organic sales were -0.7% for the half, a resilient performance against a challenging backdrop of consumer cost-of-living pressures, footwear product cycle headwinds and a highly promotional market. We remained focused on ‘controlling the controllables’ – progressing our strategy at pace while maintaining tight cost and capital discipline”, said Régis Schultz, CEO of JD Sports Fashion.

First-Half Results

In the 26 weeks to the 1^st of August 2026, the company recorded total sales of 5.9 billion British pounds (6.9 billion euros), which represents a 0.8% decrease compared with the same period last year on a constant currency basis. Excluding Wheelbase, which was sold during the previous period, sales decreased by 0.7%.

New store openings added 2.1% to sales, helping to offset the impact of having 2.2% fewer stores than a year ago, while we continued to improve the productivity of our store network. On a like-for-like basis, which excludes the impact of store openings and closures, sales decreased by 2.8%.

In North America, first-half organic sales declined by 1.7% year-on-year as trading conditions weakened in the second quarter due to weaker consumer sentiment and delayed back-to-school demand. The footwear sector was particularly challenged, with organic sales down by around 5%, although performance running continued to show momentum.

Europe proved comparatively resilient, with first-half organic sales down by just 0.5% year-on-year, despite a subdued consumer environment and promotional market. Footwear sales fell by around 2%, while apparel and accessories sales grew by approximately 7%. In the UK, organic sales fell by 1.6% in the first half, but the overall sales trend improved during the period.

In contrast to the group’s larger markets, the Asia Pacific region recorded organic growth of 10.7% and comparable growth of 3.0%, compared to the first half of the last financial year, supported by broad-based strength across footwear, apparel, accessories and online sales.

JD Sports’ profitability came under pressure during the first half of the full-year 2027. Gross margin narrowed by 20 basis points year-on-year to 46.8% as the group responded to changing consumer demand and competitive conditions by making targeted price investments, particularly online. These investments had an estimated negative impact of 50 basis points on margin, which was partly offset by higher marketing contributions.

The company’s operating profit before adjusting items also fell by 20.5% year-on-year to 294 million British pounds (341.8 million euros), reflecting lower gross profit and higher operating costs. Profit before tax and adjusting items declined by 19.7% to 282 million British pounds (372.8 million euros), down from 351 million British pounds (408.0 million euros) in the same period a year earlier.

Full-Year Outlook

The group maintained its full-year guidance, expecting profit before tax and adjustments of 700 to 800 million British pounds (813.7 to 930.0 million euros), and free cash flow of 460 to 520 million British pounds (534.7 to 604.5 million euros). This is supported by a continued focus on working capital efficiency and inventory management.

1 GBP = 1.16 EUR

Image Credits: businessoffashion.com

United Kingdom Companies JD Sports Quarter Results Results Sportswear