“I am pleased to report like-for-like sales growth of 2.4% and organic sales growth of 8.3% in the second quarter, demonstrating the strength and agility of our multi-brand model. In particular, we saw double-digit organic sales growth in North America and Europe, supported by the continued success of our JD store rollout programme. We completed the acquisition of Hibbett, Inc. just before the period end, and we look forward to its contribution to the growth and development of our US business in the coming years. Based on our first-half trading, we remain on track to deliver profit within our full-year guidance”, commented Régis Schultz, CEO of JD Sports Fashion.

Second Quarter Trading Update

In the second quarter of the current financial year, the company reported a like-for-like sales growth of 2.4% and an organic sales growth of 8.3%, as compared to the same period of fiscal 2024. 

These figures (which reflect an improvement on the first quarter of the year when JD Sports’ like-for-like sales declined by 0.7% and organic sales grew by 4.9%) resulted in like-for-like sales growth of 0.7% and organic sales growth of 6.4% in the first half of the year, as compared to the same period last fiscal year.

The sports retailer highlighted the performances recorded in North America and Europe, where like-for-like sales increased in the second quarter by 5.7% and 3.0%, respectively, on a comparable basis to the same period of the previous year. In the UK, like-for-like sales were down by 0.8% year-on-year, albeit with a slight improvement on the previous quarter, while in Asia Pacific they were up by 0.1% year-on-year.

Ultimately, all regions delivered organic growth in the thirteen weeks to the 3^rd of August. North America led the way with 13.7% growth, followed by Europe and Asia-Pacific with 10.5% and the UK with 1.2%, as compared to the second quarter of last year.

JD Sports reported a gross margin of 48.4% in the second quarter of fiscal 2025, 30 basis points lower than the same period of the previous year, mainly due to the performance of “apparel and online, where its higher penetration resulted in the UK being most impacted”. As a result, the first half gross margin was 48.3%, 10 basis points lower than in the same period last year.

In the first half of the year, 85 new JD stores were opened, which, together with the acquisition of Hibbett (completed on the 25th of July) and the ongoing disposal of non-core stores, increased the total number of stores to 4 506, 1 189 more than at the beginning of the year.

On the Hibbet acquisition in particular, the company stressed that it was a “great addition” to the Complementary Concepts segment in North America and that it added significant “scale and presence in the US through its 1 179 stores, strengthening further our brand relationships in the world's largest sportswear market”.

Outlook

“The global macro environment remains volatile, and so we continue to be cautious on our outlook for the rest of the year”, said JD Sports. However, based on the first half performance and taking into account an expected headwind of approximately 15 million British pounds at current exchange rates due to a stronger pound, the company continues to expect profit before tax and adjusting items to be in the range of 955 million to 1.04 billion British pounds (1.14 billion to 1.24 billion euros), on a pre-Hibbett basis.