Will JD Sports rescue Debenhams?
JD Sports has emerged as a “serious contender” to rescue Debenhams, a move that would escalate its rivalry with Mike Ashley, owner of Sports Direct and House of Fraser.


JD Sports has emerged as a “serious contender” to rescue Debenhams, reports Oliver Gill in the Daily Telegraph. The move would “significantly escalate” its “long-running” rivalry with Mike Ashley, who controls Sports Direct and the department store House of Fraser. Ashley, whose previous £125m bid for Debenhams was rejected, has so far failed to find partners who can help him improve his offer. The interest from JD Sports will raise “fresh hopes” among Debenhams’ 12,000 staff, who have suffered “years of uncertainty”.
Not so fast, says Jim Armitage in the Evening Standard. While it is “anyone’s guess” who ends up with Debenhams, it is certain that “nobody will want all 124 stores”. It may be that nobody “will want any Debenhams-branded stores at all”, since it is hard to see how a “second-rate department store chain” will survive post-Covid-19 “when even your granny shops online”. One suspects that JD Sports’s interest is “being talked up to squeeze more cash out of Ashley”.
Still, even if it doesn’t end up buying Debenhams, it will at least be able to hold onto Footasylum, says Ashley Armstrong in The Times. In a “rare” defeat for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the Competition Appeals Tribunal agreed with JD Sports that its £90m takeover of the rival footwear retailer didn’t represent a “substantial lessening of competition” as it “faced increasing competition” from Nike and Adidas’ websites. As a result, the deal will have to be referred back to the CMA and the planned divestment of Footasylum’s stores can be postponed for now.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Get the latest financial news, insights and expert analysis from our award-winning MoneyWeek team, to help you understand what really matters when it comes to your finances.

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.
He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.
Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.
As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.
Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri
-
Will “Liberation Day” strike again?
Donald Trump’s 90-day tariff pause comes to an end on 9 July. Can we expect further market turmoil?
-
Israel claims victory in the '12-day war' with Iran
Donald Trump may have announced a ceasefire in the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, but what comes next depends on what happens internally in Iran
-
Investors remain calm as the Middle East war unfolds
Conflict in the Middle East has failed to shake oil or stock markets. Can the peace hold?
-
London's new private stock market Pisces 'faces three big problems'
Opinion The Pisces exchange may fill a gap in the market, but it won’t address the real problem, says Matthew Lynn
-
Spectra Systems: a 'boffin-led' tech stock with business acumen
Opinion Patient investors will get paid well as they wait for success from Spectra Systems, a promising Aim stock, says Jamie Ward
-
How amateur investors could rescue UK stocks
Private investors must be the beneficiaries of a stock market recovery, says Bruce Packard – not brokers and fund managers
-
The British railway industry is in rude health – here's why investors should jump aboard
The railway industry has bounced back from the devastating impact of the pandemic and is entering a new phase of development – and profitability
-
A cyclical case for UK stocks
Opinion Depressed margins and relatively low valuations mean the UK market could rally strongly as conditions improve, says Cris Sholto Heaton.
-
Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust: a fund that lets you buy Britain on a triple discount
Opinion If UK stocks return to favour, Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust, a value-focused investment trust, should perform well, says Max King
-
Infrastructure investing: a haven of stable growth amid market turmoil
From booming construction in emerging markets to digital and green transitions, the infrastructure sector offers security, returns and long-term opportunities