Decathlon Secretly Supplies Sports Goods to Russia Despite Official Withdrawal

French retailer uses shell companies and diverts EU production to continue supplying its products in Russia, violating its public stance against Russia's war in Ukraine.

• Decathlon, the French sports retail giant, has been secretly supplying sports goods to Russia despite officially withdrawing from the Russian market in protest of Russia's war in Ukraine.
• The company sold its 60 local Russian outlets to Desport in October 2023, but has continued to supply Desport with products carrying its flagship brands.
• Decathlon has used a shell company in Dubai and a Singapore-based subsidiary to conceal its exports as part of a supply agreement with Desport, worth at least €11 million.
• Decathlon diverted part of its production originally earmarked for EU markets, and boosted output at Asian production sites to meet Russian demand.
• Decathlon has stated that it 'operates no stores in the Russian Federation, employs no staff and owns no stakes in active companies in the country' and is doing 'everything to stop the resale on Russian Federation territory of products purchased in Europe by third parties'.

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