DECATHLON UK'S STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS DELIVER STRONG H2 2024 REBOUND

London, UK. Decathlon UK today announces its strategic report for the financial year ending 31st December 2024. The report highlights a period of significant investment and ​ accelerated transformation, all aimed at enhancing customer experience and adapting to evolving retail behaviours. 

While the first half of the year saw a temporary decline in turnover due to these extensive strategic investments and associated operational disruption, the latter half of 2024 demonstrated a robust recovery, establishing a clear positive trajectory for 2025 and beyond.

Decathlon UK, part of the global Decathlon Group, a leading international sports retailer boasting €16.2 billion turnover in 2024 and 1,815 stores worldwide. In the United Kingdom, Decathlon UK operates 42 stores, alongside its logistics, warehousing, and administrative functions. The company remains steadfast in its core philosophy to "Move people through the wonders of sport."

Strategic Transformation and Performance Overview

The 2024 financial year was characterised by a comprehensive reconfiguration of 15 UK stores and the launch of a redesigned, user-centric e-commerce platform. These ambitious structural changes, whilst crucial for long-term commercial performance, did lead to short-term operational disruption. Consequently, total turnover for the year declined by 8.4%, with in-store sales down 8.3% and online sales down 10.2%. This impact was most pronounced during store renovation phases and the initial transition following the website launch.

Furthermore, the challenging external environment, marked by persistent inflation, high interest rates, and pressure on real household incomes, also contributed to softer demand in discretionary categories like sporting goods and a continued decline in retail footfall.

Encouraging Second Half Recovery and Future Outlook

Despite initial headwinds, Decathlon UK experienced a gradual and consistent recovery from August onwards, particularly within its digital channels, where performance stabilised and improved significantly. This positive trend in the latter part of the year signals renewed momentum, with the strategic investments beginning to yield tangible results. The company reported a remarkable +15% turnover growth across all sales channels in the first half of 2025, unequivocally demonstrating the effectiveness of the 2024 transformation efforts.

Key Investments and Innovations

Decathlon UK invested £8.4 million in capital expenditure towards the modernisation of fifteen flagship stores. This included implementing new circular layouts, its latest signature retail concepts focused on key sports such as road cycling, running, and football, and rolling out Decathlon’s updated global branding following a brand relaunch in March 2024. Concurrently, the company was a pioneer in launching the new global Decathlon e-commerce platform in the UK, significantly improving product content visibility and the overall online customer experience.

Further investments included the completion of a £24 million warehouse automation project, initiated in 2023, which has dramatically enhanced logistical efficiency. The company also reported a gross margin rate of 38.3%, a slight decrease from 38.7% in 2023. This reflects a strategic decision to reposition Decathlon within its price segment and improve value perception for customers. This revised pricing strategy, introduced in the second half of 2024, has positively impacted sales growth, driven by much higher growth in quantities sold.

Optimising Store Portfolio and Financial Provisions

In line with its commitment to optimising customer experience and profitability, Decathlon UK will continue to evolve its store portfolio through strategic relocations, "right-sizing" initiatives, and carefully planned store closures. The 2024 financial statement reflects a total of £11 millions in transformation provisions and in impairments of assets.

Commitment to People and Sustainability

Decathlon UK remains deeply dedicated to its employees, investing in their training and development, offering flexible working options, and promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The company is proud to report that staff turnover decreased to 50.20% in 2024 (from 59.23% in 2023), and "Pleasure at Work" scores increased to 92% (from 90% in 2023), reflecting the positive impact of its internal initiatives.

Sustainability continues to be a core focus. In 2024, Decathlon UK significantly expanded its Circular Economy initiatives, including the nationwide Buyback programme for used sports equipment and enhanced repair services. The company facilitated over 110,000 circular services last year, including repairs, refurbishments, buybacks, and rentals. Environmental programmes like community clean-up events and the "No Left Tent Behind" campaign were also successfully launched.

Beyond environmental efforts, Decathlon UK reinforced its mission to "Move People through the Wonders of Sport" by actively increasing participation in physical activity. This included the nationwide Red January initiative, the launch of its first Charity of the Year programme with ParkPlay, and partnerships with Equip Sport and the Opening Schools Facilities (OSF) programme to enhance sports accessibility in underserved communities. Decathlon UK is proud that 100% of the energy consumed by its stores and warehouses in the UK comes from renewable sources.

The Directors are confident that the strategic decisions and investments made throughout 2024 have established a robust foundation for sustainable growth and continued success in the years to come.

Eric Mazillier, Decathlon UK CEO, commented on the results: Last year was a truly pivotal year for Decathlon UK. We made significant investments and underwent deep transformation, bringing us to a genuine tipping point to set us up for strong growth and an ambitious future. ​ ​ ​
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​Our strategic investments, initiated in 2023 and continuing through 2024, began to really bear fruit from May 2024. A key focus of these investments was finalising the automation of our logistics. This will allow us to manage substantial future growth while simultaneously speeding up deliveries and boosting customer satisfaction, our NPS in the second half of 2024 seeing a 10-point improvement.
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​We also accelerated an in-depth review of our value proposition to better highlight the technicality and premium quality of our high-end products. For example: ​
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​Kiprun footwear, famously worn by Jimmy Gressier during his 5km European record, Paul Chemino, Méline Rollin (French marathon record holder), and Blandine L'Hirondelle (winner of UTMB 2025).
​Van Rysel bikes, which equip the Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team riders in the current Tour de France.
​Gael Monfils' tennis rackets , plus Kipsta official match balls used in the Europa & Europa Conference ​ leagues, and football boots worn by Antoine Griezmann in the Spanish LaLiga. ​
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​And there are many more examples.
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​To align with this enhanced value proposition, we invested heavily in transforming our 15 largest stores during spring 2024. We also rapidly redeveloped a new online user experience (UX) and a new back office system. As part of our strategy, we made provisions to close points of sale that didn't meet our new standards, resulting in four closures in 2024, with a similar number planned for 2025.
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​In parallel, since mid-2024, we've significantly invested in lowering our prices. This initiative aims to support the purchasing power of many Britons and reinforce our unique market position: offering high-quality, technical products at accessible prices.
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​We have also reinforced our investments to support sport participation in the UK through a series of National RunDays and PlayDays events, welcoming people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds, which have collectively created more than 120,000 additional hours of sporting activity. ​
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​Despite the incredible dedication of our teams, these substantial changes did negatively impact our first-half performance in 2024 due to disruption from the transformations. However, they quickly paved the way for a strong rebound in the second half of the year, where we saw double-digit revenue growth. While this strong acceleration didn’t fully offset the initial impact, it gives us huge confidence in the future value of these investments. ​
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​This positive momentum has continued, with growth exceeding 15% in the first half of 2025. These investments and calculated risks have allowed us to maintain a very consistent pace over the past 12 months, significantly outperforming the market. Crucially, our success has also translated to increased job satisfaction, reaching a record 92% (a 2-point increase) as confirmed by our latest internal surveys.
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​We are now in an ideal position to continue to expand in the UK.

ABOUT DECATHLON

A global multi-specialist sports brand catering to beginners and top athletes, Decathlon is an innovative maker of sporting goods for all skills. With more than 100,000 teammates and 1,700 stores worldwide, Decathlon and its teams have been working ever since 1976 to fulfil an ongoing ambition : Move people through the wonders of sport, to help them be healthier and happier in a sustainable future.

Decathlon's UK business, established in 1999, currently employs 1,450 individuals who contribute to the company's mission and vision.

MEDIA CONTACT
​Henry Courtier - Senior Communications Manager UK
​henry.courtier@decathon.com