Decathlon: Javier López succeeds Barbara Martin Coppola as CEO

Decathlon's board of directors has appointed Spain's Javier López (born 1976) as the group's new chief executive officer, announced the sporting goods retailer on 27/03/2025. He succeeds Barbara Martin Coppola, in post since March 2022.

"With 26 years' experience at Decathlon, Javier López has held a number of positions within the company, in digital, logistics and retail. Most recently, Javier was head of Decathlon Germany from 2012 to 2015, and then CEO of Decathlon Spain from 2015 to 2022. As the driving force behind the company's strong growth in Spain, Javier was appointed global chief value chain officer in 2022."

This appointment comes a month after Frenchman Julien Leclercq, born on 07/04/1984, was appointed chairman of the board at Decathlon on 24/02/2025. Leclercq took up his post on 10/03/2025. Julien Leclercq is the youngest son of Michel Leclercq, the founder of Decathlon (and cousin of Gérard Mulliez, the founder of French supermarket chain Auchan).

"Together we will drive our economic development" (J. López, Decathlon Sector: Design and distribution of sporting…