JD Sports fined for fixing prices of replica football kits

Fines totalling more than £2m have been handed out to JD Sports, Elite Sports and Rangers FC after the competition watchdog found they fixed the prices of replica football kits.

Bury-headquartered JD Sports, along with Elite Sports, broke the law by fixing retail prices of the Rangers-branded kits and other clothing items from September 2018 to July 2019, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said.

The watchdog added that Rangers "also took part in the collusion", but only in fixing the price of specific adult home short-sleeved shirts from September to mid-November in 2018.

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The CMA added that all three colluded to stop JD Sports undercutting the retail price of the shirt on Elite’s Gers Online store.

Elite Sports has been fined £459,000, JD Sports £1.485m and Rangers £225,000.

The penalties include a settlement discount, reflecting resource savings to the CMA as a result of all three parties admitting to acting illegally and helping bring a swifter resolution to the investigation.

Elite Sports’ and JD Sports’ penalties also include a discount for coming forward with information about their participation in the illegal conduct and cooperating with the investigation under the CMA’s Leniency Programme.

Michael Grenfell, executive director of enforcement at the CMA, said: "at a time when many people are worried about the rising cost of living, it is important that football fans are able to benefit from competitively priced merchandise.

"Instead, Elite, JD Sports and, to some extent, Rangers, worked together to keep prices high.

"Today’s decision sends a clear message to football clubs and other businesses that illegal anti-competitive