Market briefs
Sporting Goods Retailer Opens 24 Stores, Market briefs
In Houston, Academy Sports and Outdoors plans to open at least 20 new stores in 2026, continuing its expansion into new and existing markets.
The Katy, Texas-based sporting goods retailer opened 24 new stores in 2025, pushing its count to 322 stores in 21 states, as stated by a company earnings report. The retailer, which entered Pennsylvania and Maryland last year, expects to open another 20 to 25 stores in 2026.
“This past year marked an inflection point for Academy as we continued to gain market share and moved back to topline growth. During 2025, we put in place many foundational building blocks that helped drive sales and will continue to pay dividends in 2026 and beyond,” Academy CEO Steve Lawrence said when the deal was released. “We are accelerating the digital transformation of our business and building an omni-channel experience that will deepen engagement with our customers through data-driven personalization.”
The 24 new stores added 1.3 million SF of retail space to Academy’s portfolio, or an average of about 54,000 SF per store. Among locations in Texas, Academy plans to build stores in Magnolia, Argyle, Waco, Granbury, and McAllen, as stated by Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Academy generated $6.053 billion in sales in fiscal 2025, up 3.5% over the previous year. Net income totaled $376.8 million, a 10% drop compared to fiscal 2024. Comparable store sales, which exclude new stores and include e-commerce sales, were down 1.5% in 2025, but are slated to improve in fiscal 2026.
“As we move through the year, we expect to see tailwinds from our internal initiatives of new store growth, omni-channel growth and the expansion of the current business. We also expect to see growth aided by external events, including increased tax refunds, international sporting events and America’s 250th anniversary,” said Carl Ford, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. “We are also mindful that the American consumer is still under financial pressure that we expect to persist throughout 2026.”
