JD Sports is set to buy out the minority shareholders in Iberian Sports Retail Group (ISRG) to acquire 100% of the brand as it strengthens its foothold in the Iberian peninsula.
The sportswear retailer announced plans to buy out the remaining 49.98% shares in ISRG in a €500.1m (£427m) deal funded by the group’s existing available cash resources.
ISRG has 460 stores across Europe including JD in Iberia, Sprinter in Spain, Sport Zone in Portugal, and Aktiesport and Perry Sport in the Netherlands.
JD Sports said it sees “opportunities to continue to develop Sprinter and Sport Zone” and the ISRG acquisition will “have an important part to play in the further development of the JD fascia in Iberia and beyond”.
The retailer expects the transaction to be completed by October after an ordinary resolution is passed in favour of the acquisition at ISRG’s general meeting in September.
JD Sports chief executive Régis Schultz said: “At our capital markets event earlier in the year, we emphasised the benefit of having strong complementary concepts to support our ‘JD first’ global growth strategy. ISRG is a highly successful business and one of the leading players in sports retail in Iberia. By bringing the two businesses closer together, there is significant potential for accelerating growth.
“We sincerely thank the minority shareholders, Balaiko and Sonae, for their important contributions to the business during our time as partners.”
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