Running is booming, but outdoor activities have not yet reached former levels - says Intersport International’s new CEO, Tom Foley, describing the current market situation, which is growing by more than 2%. In this interview, he discusses successful categories and regions, as well as his strategy for maintaining the group’s success.
Since July 2025, Tom Foley has led Intersport International Corporation, entering a challenging environment. The group comprises 5,464 specialty stores in 42 countries and achieved €14.0 billion in annual sales in 2024 — a 2.1 percent increase compared to the previous year.
How is the sports market developing in the face of wage disputes and consumer slumps in various countries? Which categories are performing well, and which are not? What actually happened with the group’s online plans?
A conversation about market mechanisms, consumer behavior, digital strategies, and why genuine enthusiasm for sports often arises at the local level rather than on the big stage.
Tom Foley: “In general, a positive picture”
SGIE: What kind of feedback are you currently receiving from the markets? How are they performing?
Tom Foley: In general, it’s a relatively positive picture. Our half-year figures are up by over 2% year-on-year, which is encouraging—especially considering that last year included the 2024 European Championships, and we’re a strong football retailer. Therefore, we’re comparing against a particularly strong period.
We’re also seeing further growth in our vast network of multi-format stores, including via the launch of new Intersport Football stores in Greece, Türkiye and the Netherlands. Overall, we’re optimistic because the trends are moving in a positive direction.
Which regions are performing best at the moment?
Performance has been strong across the board. As outlined in our 2024 Group Financial results, France, Switzerland, and Italy continue to do well. Furthermore, we’re seeing particularly good traction in Türkiye, Greece, Ireland and Sweden. There are no standout surges, but also no areas of real concern—it’s a steady and balanced picture overall.
But the Outdoor Industry is still waiting for the expected recovery of the markets. What’s your take on that?
Yes, outdoor is a bit of a different case. Essentially, bikes and outdoor saw such a sharp uplift during the pandemic that we’re now going through a natural correction. Over time, things may return to pre-COVID levels, but depending on the category, that could take another 18 to 24 months. Fundamentally, we believe that the love of the outdoors is as strong as ever; from hiking to running or simply taking a walk. That’s why we are optimistic about outdoor brands such as our own McKinley brand.
Running as a growth factor
Which product categories are currently performing the strongest?
Running is definitely our standout category at the moment—we’re seeing solid growth there. Training is also performing well, making those two our top-performing categories. What’s particularly encouraging in running is how closely our performance aligns with what we’re seeing from the major brands. We’re not necessarily over-indexing, but we’re very much in line with their strong results, which is a good indicator.
Even more promising is the breadth of brands contributing to that growth—it’s not just driven by one or two key players, but by a wide range of running brands. That kind of balanced brand performance is very healthy for the category overall.
Football is showing a slight decline, but only in the like-for-like comparison with last year’s 2024 European Championships. If you adjust for that, football is actually showing slight growth. That’s why we are continuing to invest in the sport. For example, through our partnership with EA FC 25, the opening of our new Intersport Football Stores, or our Intersport Football experience initiative, a pop-up event we’ve done with clubs such as Juventus, Ajax Amsterdam and AC Milan that allows grassroots players to try out new products.
Find out more about the running market
Community running fuels the growth in the running category
What do you think is driving the strong performance in the running category?
It’s quite an interesting dynamic. What seems to be driving it is the rise of community running—not so much formal running clubs or competitive events, but more social, informal gatherings where people come together to run.
We’re hearing a lot of this directly from our local markets, which is one of our key strengths. Our stores are deeply embedded in local communities, and that connection really allows us to stay close to these trends.
We’re seeing the benefits of that now, and it gives us confidence that running will continue to grow healthily and sustainably. We’re closely monitoring the space and doing everything we can to support and encourage that growth.
Running also seems to be gaining momentum in the fashion world, with emerging small brands and trendy running clubs in major cities. Are you part of this movement as well?
Yes, we are—but perhaps in a slightly different way. While the city-based, fashion-led running scene is highly visible, our strength lies more at the grassroots level. Thanks to the hyperlocal nature of our store network, we’re naturally embedded at the heart of local communities. It’s not something we’ve had to adapt to—it’s simply how we operate.
We don’t just support local running initiatives; in many cases, we actually lead them. For example, the recent iconic Mesopotamia trail run in Türkiye. These efforts may not grab headlines or go viral on social media, but they’re deeply impactful at the local level. Interestingly, many smaller running brands have gained traction through these local networks, often overlooked by the bigger players who focus more on major cities. That has created a space for smaller brands to grow authentically via local retail and community engagement. We’re also supporting many large running events, such as being an official supplier for the Paris Marathon or sponsoring the Berlin Marathon.
Our visibility may not be on high streets like Oxford Street or the Champs-Élysées, but that’s not where sport happens. Our strength lies in being close to the communities and facilities where people actually play sports. It’s a quieter presence, but a very powerful and effective one.
Small brand, big stride: Tapping into the power of running clubs
Overstock is driven by growth pressure
Given the increasing market overstock in recent years, how do you see this situation evolving?
Overstock has always been part of the industry to some extent, but it’s become more pronounced in recent years—particularly among publicly listed brands. The pressure to deliver continuous quarter-on-quarter growth drives aggressive forecasting and overproduction. The reality, of course, is that no brand can sustain relentless growth every single quarter, year after year.
This pressure creates a cycle where more and more product is pushed into the marketplace in the hope of meeting financial promises, often leading to oversupply. When those expectations aren’t met, we see the impact immediately— the share price of sporting goods companies can take significant hits, sometimes dropping sharply overnight, which speaks to the intensity of this pressure.
Ultimately, unless there’s a shift towards more realistic market expectations, particularly in the way publicly listed companies are evaluated, this overstock issue is likely to persist. It’s a systemic challenge—driven not by consumer demand, but by financial markets—and one that affects the entire industry, retailers included.
Where are you looking to grow?
Our aim is to grow in a sensible and sustainable way, collaborating closely with all of our local markets and brand partners around the world. We’ll pursue opportunities where they make sense. It’s about quality and long-term stability. As a global brand with a hyperlocal approach, we are in an ideal position to achieve this because of the scale of the local expertise and knowledge across the Intersport Group.
Your predecessor mentioned a cutthroat situation between wholesale and the big brands. Has this improved?
Yes, I believe it has. During COVID, there was a strong push for direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategies across many brands, but it’s become clear that this approach was overdone and hasn’t been as successful as expected. The anticipated seismic shift in consumer behaviour simply didn’t materialise.
Brands are now recognising that a DTC-only strategy isn’t sustainable—it brings inventory challenges, high capital expenditure, and requires different organisational structures. As a result, the wholesale channel has regained its value and importance. Most brands now see wholesale as a crucial part of their distribution channel mix.
Intersport’s online approach: Standardization is not the key
Regarding your online shop, there have been significant efforts to unite your retailers on one platform. Where do you stand on this now?
Similar to the DTC approach, we’ve found that local adaptation is key. Our strength lies in local relevance. While a one-size-fits-all model can work in some areas, overall, it doesn’t reflect how consumers actually behave. We operate in countries as diverse as Australia, Norway, and Greece — each with unique climates, languages, and local sports priorities.
We initially tried to standardise across countries, but it quickly became clear that this didn’t drive the results we were aiming for. So we moved away from a fully centralised platform and now give individual countries the flexibility to select and shape their own e-commerce platforms — tailored to local consumer and operational needs — while still maintaining a consistent Intersport design, brand feel, and user experience. We’ve accepted — and embraced — that flexibility leads to better results. We still align on shared assets, technology standards, and best practices, but local execution is key.
We continue to see growth online, which supports the success of our strategy to focus more on local markets. The feedback from local stores suggests that many customers are often researching online before visiting the store, to see and try the product in person after narrowing down their choices. In short, the online channel is complementing physical retail by driving foot traffic.
Foley: Close local connections as a strength
This is your second time at Intersport. What are your plans for the coming years?
My first role at Intersport was at a country level, and now I’m operating at an international level as CEO of Intersport International Corporation. The Intersport brand is incredibly durable—it has weathered many ups and downs over the years, which speaks to its robustness. The brand enjoys strong recognition, even in countries where we don’t currently operate.
At the same time, we remain firmly committed to our hyperlocal strategy, which has proven successful. Despite some challenges, we know our strength lies in close local connections. This is a unique element to our business – we are a global brand but one with a genuine role at the heart of local sporting communities via our physical stores, with specialists who understand local needs.
The challenge is balancing local autonomy with consistency across countries under a unified brand. Our marketing has improved considerably recently, with strong support from National Organisations, which we really appreciate.
Ultimately, while we strive for consistency, product selection and offerings must be adapted locally more than ever to remain relevant and successful. It’s with that in mind that I am focused on helping us to further enhance the collaboration with our local markets to utilize that local expertise and take our customer service to an even higher level.
Are tariffs a major issue for you at the moment?
We currently don’t have any business in the United States, so the tariffs affecting imports into the US don’t impact us directly. Naturally, as a global company, we will always keep an eye on the global market and its potential impact on our business to ensure we’re ready to respond to any challenges that come our way.
Do you expect US brand prices to rise because of tariffs?
It’s hard to say. Whether tariffs are passed on to consumers or absorbed by brands depends on each brand’s strategy. This may not affect Europe directly unless brands decide to balance costs by adjusting prices or import strategies in other regions, including Europe. While that’s possible, we haven’t seen any clear signs of this yet. Overall, it’s an area with much discussion but few concrete outcomes so far.
