Javier López appointed new CEO of Decathlon

Javier López, CEO of Decathlon. Credits: Decathlon. Sportswear multinational Decathlon has restructured its leadership, appointing Spaniard Javier López as the company's new CEO. This appointment follows Julien Leclercq's naming as Chairman of the Decathlon Group last February. With a 26-year trajectory within the sportswear company, Javier López has held the position of Global Chief Value Chain Officer at Decathlon since 2022. He rose to this position after serving nearly four years, from 2012 to 2015, as head of Decathlon's business in Germany, followed by eight years as Executive Director of Decathlon's business in Spain. Now, he assumes the sportswear multinational's highest executive responsibility as the new CEO of Decathlon. In this role, he will lead the company's future, succeeding Barbara Martin Coppola. He will be forming a leadership tandem with Julien Leclercq, following Leclercq's appointment as Chairman of the Decathlon Group last February. “I am especially honored by the trust placed in me by Julien and the Board of Directors in taking on this new role, and I thank Barbara, with whom I have enjoyed working on the Executive Committee for the past three years,” stated Javier López, the new CEO of the Decathlon Group, in a statement provided by the company. “As a Decathlon veteran with 26 years of experience, I am proud of the work we have done over the years to bring the benefits of sport to more and more people around the world.” He added, “Together, with all our teams, and with determination, enthusiasm, and humility, we will drive our economic development and our efforts to meet our human and environmental commitments.” A New Era Both executives will aim to lead this new stage of growth and expansion for Decathlon, building upon the legacy of Barbara Martin Coppola, who served as CEO since March 2022. During her tenure, the company achieved milestones such as the adoption of its refreshed corporate image and the restructuring of its brand portfolio. “I would like to thank Barbara for the valuable work she has done over the past three years,” stated Julien Leclercq, Chairman of the Decathlon Group. Thanks to her work, “today, Decathlon is a sports brand increasingly recognized worldwide for its products, its commitment, and its positive impact.” Building on this foundation, the company now “embarks on a new chapter in its history,” and Leclercq expressed “full confidence in Javier and his natural ability to unite people, drive our ambition, and identify new levers for sustainable growth, while further strengthening our unique human and inclusive culture.” “Over the past three years, we have initiated a significant evolution at Decathlon,” stated Barbara Martin Coppola, former CEO of Decathlon. “I want to thank all the teams whose dedication has made this work possible. We have repositioned the Decathlon brand by redefining the customer experience in physical stores and in e-commerce, which now represents 20 percent of our turnover. We have also redesigned our brand portfolio, signed global partnerships, and created new circular economy models.” She concluded, “I am extremely proud of the progress we have made and I have full confidence in Javier to lead an increasingly ambitious company like Decathlon.” This article was translated to English using an AI tool. FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@fashionunited.com

Mar 27, 2025 - 15:33
 0
Javier López appointed new CEO of Decathlon
Javier López, CEO de Decathlon.
Javier López, CEO of Decathlon. Credits: Decathlon.

Sportswear multinational Decathlon has restructured its leadership, appointing Spaniard Javier López as the company's new CEO. This appointment follows Julien Leclercq's naming as Chairman of the Decathlon Group last February.

With a 26-year trajectory within the sportswear company, Javier López has held the position of Global Chief Value Chain Officer at Decathlon since 2022. He rose to this position after serving nearly four years, from 2012 to 2015, as head of Decathlon's business in Germany, followed by eight years as Executive Director of Decathlon's business in Spain.

Now, he assumes the sportswear multinational's highest executive responsibility as the new CEO of Decathlon. In this role, he will lead the company's future, succeeding Barbara Martin Coppola. He will be forming a leadership tandem with Julien Leclercq, following Leclercq's appointment as Chairman of the Decathlon Group last February.

“I am especially honored by the trust placed in me by Julien and the Board of Directors in taking on this new role, and I thank Barbara, with whom I have enjoyed working on the Executive Committee for the past three years,” stated Javier López, the new CEO of the Decathlon Group, in a statement provided by the company. “As a Decathlon veteran with 26 years of experience, I am proud of the work we have done over the years to bring the benefits of sport to more and more people around the world.” He added, “Together, with all our teams, and with determination, enthusiasm, and humility, we will drive our economic development and our efforts to meet our human and environmental commitments.”

A New Era

Both executives will aim to lead this new stage of growth and expansion for Decathlon, building upon the legacy of Barbara Martin Coppola, who served as CEO since March 2022. During her tenure, the company achieved milestones such as the adoption of its refreshed corporate image and the restructuring of its brand portfolio.

“I would like to thank Barbara for the valuable work she has done over the past three years,” stated Julien Leclercq, Chairman of the Decathlon Group. Thanks to her work, “today, Decathlon is a sports brand increasingly recognized worldwide for its products, its commitment, and its positive impact.” Building on this foundation, the company now “embarks on a new chapter in its history,” and Leclercq expressed “full confidence in Javier and his natural ability to unite people, drive our ambition, and identify new levers for sustainable growth, while further strengthening our unique human and inclusive culture.”

“Over the past three years, we have initiated a significant evolution at Decathlon,” stated Barbara Martin Coppola, former CEO of Decathlon. “I want to thank all the teams whose dedication has made this work possible. We have repositioned the Decathlon brand by redefining the customer experience in physical stores and in e-commerce, which now represents 20 percent of our turnover. We have also redesigned our brand portfolio, signed global partnerships, and created new circular economy models.” She concluded, “I am extremely proud of the progress we have made and I have full confidence in Javier to lead an increasingly ambitious company like Decathlon.”

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@fashionunited.com