Sports Direct, owned by former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley, has accused the club of proposing an “unlawful” deal with JD Sports to sell next season’s shirts exclusively through the retailer. The company is seeking an injunction from the Competition Appeal Tribunal to prevent the arrangement, arguing that preventing its ability to sell cheaper shirts would harm fans. Company lawyers claimed football was “essential” to Sports Direct, the “largest sports retailer in the UK” with 488 stores, and warned that tying the sale of the club’s merchandise to a single provider would restrict competition. However, Newcastle United denies the allegations and said there was “no evidence” the deal would damage competition.
Speaking at a tribunal in London, Sports Direct’s barrister Tony Singla KC argued that the proposed deal would harm consumers and “distort” the market because the “retailer that offered the lowest prices” would be excluded. Moreover, he claimed that Sports Direct would suffer from a loss of “substantial” sales, footfall and reputation, and that Newcastle fans would turn away from the store if they were unable to buy the kits there, discrediting the company.
Thomas de la Mare KC, representing the club, argued that Sports Direct’s legal action lacked supporting evidence. He stated that the proposed agreement was a “tripartite” arrangement between the club, Adidas, the manufacturer, and JD Sports, which had had its equivalent in the market for up to 10 years without attracting attention. He went on to add that the largest club Sports Direct had launched legal action against was Newcastle United. In addition, he lambasted Sports Direct for its reputation, which was already “toxic” in view of Mr. Ashley’s ownership, and remarked on previous fan boycotts.
Sports Direct did not sell the full Newcastle kit because it had not ordered any socks and only wanted one pair of shorts for every 22 shirts, according to de la Mare. Sports Direct currently pays Adidas £16.55 per shirt for other Premier League clubs supplied by the German manufacturer, and wants to purchase 51,000, or around 14%, of Newcastle United’s kits produced. Newcastle’s kit is currently produced by Castore, but the club has agreed on a “multi-year partnership” with Adidas from the 2024-25 season. Planned to be introduced in June and additionally in August, the tribunal heard that the new home strip is due for launch
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