JD Sports appeals against CMA Footasylum ruling

JD Sports is appealing against the blocking of its £90m takeover of Footasylum, according to documents published by the Competition and Markets Authority on Thursday.

The company last month described the decision to reverse the deal as “absurd” and failed to take into account the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on an already-struggling high street.

JD, which owns chains such as Blacks, Go Outdoors, Millets and Sprinter in Spain, as well as its namesake, said at the CMA's decision relied on an “inaccurate and outdated analysis of the UK sports retail competitive landscape” underpinned by “outdated and flawed customer surveys”.

"Since the outbreak of COVID-19, competition has not lessened; it has become even more intense as the consumer transition to online has accelerated at a meteoric rate,” JD Sports said in May.

“We are astounded that the CMA has failed to recognise that this isn't just a short-term blip, but rather a long-term societal and behavioural change in how consumers shop.”

It also launched a thinly-veiled attack on rival Sports Direct, accusing the CMA of being “taken in by the self-serving testimony of one notoriously vocal competitor”.

CMA surveys said Footasylum was a competitor to JD Sports and the deal would lessen competition and ordered a sale to an independent bidder.