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Basketball State of Play 2026
Basketball is where participation, fandom, footwear and fashion reinforce one another. 610 million players. 3.3 billion fans.
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Columbia decides the city counts as terrain
Columbia’s Street Tech range moves its full trail technology onto city pavement
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New Balance sues Decathlon over Kiprun shoe logo
Boston brand claims Kiprun’s mirrored logo mark is confusingly close to its iconic N.
PUMA gives Europe to Nike’s former EMEA sales lead
The incoming Europe lead built his record at Nike, most recently returning EMEA wholesale to growth before leaving in 2025.
Basketball State of Play 2026
Basketball is where participation, fandom, footwear and fashion reinforce one another. 610 million players. 3.3 billion fans.
Columbia decides the city counts as terrain
Columbia’s Street Tech range moves its full trail technology onto city pavement
New Balance sues Decathlon over Kiprun shoe logo
Boston brand claims Kiprun’s mirrored logo mark is confusingly close to its iconic N.
Strava opens Metro academic program for third year
Applications close Oct. 23 for free access to Strava’s cycling and pedestrian dataset, used by over 4,500 city planners.
JD Sports enters Mexico with 140-store franchise
The UK retailer launches in 2027 via a license deal with Grupo Axo, marking its first entry into Mexico.
Babolat renews 4PADEL supply deal for four more years
The partnership, running since 2018, adds a co-branded product collection and backs 4PADEL’s expansion into Germany.
World Athletics names Nairobi, Munich as future hosts
Nairobi becomes the first African host of the World Athletics Championships; Munich will host for a third time.
New York dethrones Paris in Burson’s sports cities ranking
A three-year streak by Paris ends as an NBA title and the FIFA World Cup Final lift New York to the top of Burson’s index.
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Castore reportedly explores sale a decade after launch
JPMorgan is canvassing buyers for the brand Andy Murray backs, with interest from China among the approaches.
NGE fitness expands beyond UK Decathlon marketplace
A year after joining Decathlon’s UK marketplace, Northern Gym Equipment has expanded to 300+ listings and entered selected stores.
Castore at 10: From challenger to the global stage
Castore turns 10 this month, having expanded into F1, football, rugby, cricket, golf and heritage lifestyle brands.
The challenger hires the expert: GOFLUO taps John Zopfi
John Zopfi spent decades building wholesale networks for Patagonia and 7mesh. Now he is taking that playbook to the visibility Belgian challenger brand.
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Webinar: The German army trainer effect
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Closing the distance: inside LTP’s clubhouse in Saigon
LTP Group has opened a dedicated development space in Ho Chi Minh City that compresses performance apparel sampling from months to fourteen days.
Nike may be borrowing the LVMH playbook
Two infrastructure deals and an LVMH board appointment. Nike may be trading athlete endorsement for luxury brand restraint.
On enters football with Mbappé
On names Thierry Henry Director of Football and expands Sydney Schertenleib’s role as it enters team sports for the first time.
Amer Sports lifts Q3 revenue growth guidance to 22%
The upgrade landed a day before Amer Sports’ investor day in France, where Salomon took center stage.
Hugo Boss names Frasers chief Michael Murray chairman
Ashley’s retailer secured the Hugo Boss chair days after ousting its previous head, without completing a takeover.
JD Sports enters Mexico with 140-store franchise
The UK retailer launches in 2027 via a license deal with Grupo Axo, marking its first entry into Mexico.
Webinar: The German army trainer effect
Join SGI Europe & Hot Pot to analyze the $9.4B China active footwear market.
SPORT 2000 renames SNEAKER FORCE as SPORTSTYLE EXPERTS
The naming change reveals how SPORT 2000 is repositioning a niche retailer group for broader category growth.
Can Wero turn European ambition into European adoption?
Decathlon Germany’s digital chief tells SGIE how Wero’s first weeks at checkout are going, and where adoption still falls short.
Columbia decides the city counts as terrain
Columbia’s Street Tech range moves its full trail technology onto city pavement
Strava opens Metro academic program for third year
Applications close Oct. 23 for free access to Strava’s cycling and pedestrian dataset, used by over 4,500 city planners.
Babolat renews 4PADEL supply deal for four more years
The partnership, running since 2018, adds a co-branded product collection and backs 4PADEL’s expansion into Germany.
Nike gives Caitlin Clark her own signature shoe
The Caitlin 1 arrives with an 18-piece apparel line as Nike defends its lead in women’s basketball footwear.
Basketball State of Play 2026
Basketball is where participation, fandom, footwear and fashion reinforce one another. 610 million players. 3.3 billion fans.
New York dethrones Paris in Burson’s sports cities ranking
A three-year streak by Paris ends as an NBA title and the FIFA World Cup Final lift New York to the top of Burson’s index.
APAC football fandom is massive. Merch sales are not.
The fandom is real. The conversion model most European clubs use in APAC is not built for the region.
Brands race to catch the run clubs’ wave
Running clubs surge across Asia and in cities worldwide, turning what was once solitary exercise into a collective ritual of reconnection and belonging.
Adidas cuts a tech hub in India it built five years ago
Adidas India Tech Cuts: Digital Build-Out Strategy Under Review
“Simplify to amplify”: Under Armour’s race to win runners
SGIE in conversation with UA on cutting the range and finding the runner.
adidas marketing ops VP Jochen Denninger dies at 57
Jochen Denninger, adidas Vice President of Marketing Operations since 2024, died on August 23 after 29 years with the brand.
Lululemon comms chief Bill Chandler exits Sept. 4
Chandler’s exit follows Lululemon’s AI chief and strategy chief departures ahead of O’Neill’s Sept. 8 CEO start.
WFSGI Impact Report
WFSGI’s most systematic report yet puts the sporting goods industry’s global GDP contribution at $675 billion, supporting 28 million jobs.
Udinese Calcio pilots UEFA sustainability framework
A Serie A club is using UEFA’s sustainability manual and emissions calculator to show concrete results, not just plans.
TrusTrace lets brands ask their supply chain questions
The Stockholm company’s new tool uses AI to answer natural-language questions and surface compliance gaps as they emerge.
UTMB 2026: the access model and the backlash against it
Formula 1 sells the feeling of access. Paddock passes cost five figures. UTMB gives it free. In the street.
New Apple Watch ties in with US bloodwork lab
Apple has partnered with US lab-testing firm Quest Diagnostics to let users order at-home tests via the Health app for $119.
CASE STUDY: Inside Anta’s AI365 strategy
Anta built its own AI models and deployed them across design, retail and operations, at scale.
Ahotu partners with URUNN to close the race-to-training gap
Ahotu’s race finder feeds into URUNN, the running app from Olympic champion Mo Farah, turning a race pick into a personal plan.
After ad-business recovery, X introduces card payments
Sport has gotten X back in with advertisers. X Money is a different story.
Hainan duty-free partners with Lululemon
The Hainan duty-free retailer is expanding a sports portfolio that now includes Lululemon, Salomon, Under Armour, adidas and Nike.
Nike may pocket the tariff refund. Consumers want it back.
Footwear giant raised prices by up to $10 to offset $1bn in import costs. Now the tariffs are gone — and so is its commitment to refund shoppers.
Trump tariff refunds: are you in the queue?
$127 billion enters the queue — but not all at once
US Customs race to build IEEPA tariff refund system
Around 330,000 US importers await refunds on $166bn in IEEPA tariffs as CBP builds a new processing system under court supervision.
New Balance sues Decathlon over Kiprun shoe logo
Boston brand claims Kiprun’s mirrored logo mark is confusingly close to its iconic N.
Alo Jewelry wins China trademark case against Alo Yoga
Alo Yoga has filed similar challenges against several other marks it considers close to its own, with mixed results so far.
PPWR: blessing or curse for sporting goods industry?
WFSGI and FESI legal counsel Dr. Jochen M. Schaefer asks whether Brussels’ packaging overhaul helps or harms the industry.
Gymshark sued over hidden influencer marketing
A New York lawsuit says Gymshark’s influencer army hid its paid endorsements behind buried hashtags and exclusive contracts.
Intelligence, analysis and advice for the global sporting goods industry.
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