JD Sports to shut 24 UK excessive avenue shops after revenue warning issued

JD Sports Fashion confirms 24 UK store closures on the high street as retail giant issues profit warning citing geopolitical tensions and challenging retail sector conditions

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A leading high street sports retailer has confirmed the recent closure of over 20 stores nationwide, warning that geopolitical factors could hit profits and ramp up costs.

JD Sports Fashion, which runs a total of 4,811 shops globally, has reported a dip in its annual earnings and cautioned that conflict in the Middle East could lead to increased costs.

The company warned this could also drive up prices and dampen customer demand.

In light of the uncertain geopolitical climate, JD also confirmed it had shut down 24 stores across the country in the past year. The closures are part of JD’s strategy to focus on “fewer, bigger, better” outlets.

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The sports brand stated that the war in Iran has so far had no “direct exposure” on the business, with only a small number of franchised stores in the region. However, the firm warned that “heightened uncertainty” could eventually “contribute to direct cost pressures”, reports the Manchester Evening News.

JD commented: “Over time, the potential future impacts of heightened uncertainty may contribute to direct cost pressures, including energy and fuel costs across our store and logistics networks, respectively, as well as potential indirect impacts on pricing and consumer demand should input cost inflation emerge.”

As it confronts uncertainty, the retailer revealed it was offering a broader range of profit guidance for the upcoming financial year than originally intended. It is now predicting a pre-tax profit of between £750 million and £850 million.

This would represent a drop from the £852 million pre-tax profit that the business generated for the year ending January 2026, which was down 6.4% compared with the preceding year. Total organic sales for the group, which strips out the effect of acquisitions, rose by 2.1% year on year to £12.66 billion.

In the UK, JD attributed the fall in organic sales to a “tough consumer backdrop”. Since the financial year concluded, JD also stated that cold and wet weather had dampened sales. It described April trading as “volatile”, with a robust Easter showing followed by reduced footfall in stores.

Regis Schultz, JD’s chief executive, said: “We delivered a resilient performance, achieving organic sales growth of 2.1% despite tough market conditions.

“Our deep understanding of our customers and lifestyle trends give us a clear view of how they want to shop and spend, allowing us to consistently deliver the right products, in the right places and at the right prices.

“Whilst we continue to expect muted market growth in FY27 (2027 financial year), we remain confident in JD Group’s medium‐term trajectory, underpinned by our strong brand partnerships and agile, multi‐brand model.”

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