--- title: "JD Sports vs Sports Direct: Which is searched more in the United Kingdom?" description: "Is JD Sports or Sports Direct more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Shoe retailers set in the United Kingdom. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/compare/jd-sports-vs-sports-direct" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # JD Sports vs Sports Direct: Which is searched more in the United Kingdom? Is JD Sports or Sports Direct more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Shoe retailers set in the United Kingdom. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Compared**: JD Sports and Sports Direct - **Competitive set**: Shoe retailers - **Market**: United Kingdom - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **JD Sports Share of Search**: 23.2% - **Sports Direct Share of Search**: 51.8% ## Is JD Sports or Sports Direct more popular in search? - In September 2026, Sports Direct had more branded searches than JD Sports among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom. Sports Direct had about 3.4 million branded searches, while JD Sports had 1.5 million. Sports Direct made up 51.8% of all shoe retailer searches we track, and JD Sports accounted for 23.2%. - Sports Direct was ahead of JD Sports in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, JD Sports’ share of searches among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom moved from 25.9% to 23.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 1.8M to 1.5M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Sports Direct’s share of searches among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom moved from 47.4% to 51.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 3.4M. ## Top shoe retailers in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, JD Sports was mentioned in three out of four: in all three ChatGPT answers, but not in the Google AI Overview. Sports Direct was mentioned in two out of four: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in the Google AI Overview. JD Sports was listed before Sports Direct in every answer that named either. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | schuh | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 4 of 4 | | JD Sports | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 3 of 4 | | Office | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 3 of 4 | | Sports Direct | 4th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Clarks | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Foot Locker | 6th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Kurt Geiger | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 0 of 4 | ## Every AI answer about shoe retailers - Asked ChatGPT "Where should I buy shoes and trainers in the UK?": 1. JD Sports, 2. Sports Direct, 3. schuh, 4. Office, 5. Clarks, 6. Foot Locker - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best shoe shops in the UK?": 1. schuh, 2. Clarks, 3. Office, 4. JD Sports - Asked ChatGPT "Which UK shoe shop has the best range of trainers?": 1. JD Sports, 2. schuh, 3. Sports Direct, 4. Foot Locker - Searched Google, AI Overview "shoes": 1. schuh, 2. Office Not named in any answer: Kurt Geiger. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United Kingdom on October 22, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United Kingdom shoe retailers in September 2026? - In September 2026, Sports Direct gained share of searches among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom, from 47.9% to 51.8%. - In September 2026, JD Sports lost share of searches among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom, from 26.3% to 23.2%. ## Month by month | Month | JD Sports estimated searches | JD Sports Share of Search | JD Sports rank | Sports Direct estimated searches | Sports Direct Share of Search | Sports Direct rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 1.8M | 25.9% | 2 | 3.4M | 47.4% | 1 | | Nov 2025 | 2.7M | 29.3% | 2 | 4.1M | 43.7% | 1 | | Dec 2025 | 3.4M | 34% | 2 | 4.1M | 41.5% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | 1.5M | 22.5% | 2 | 3.4M | 50.2% | 1 | | Feb 2026 | 1.2M | 22.8% | 2 | 2.7M | 51.2% | 1 | | Mar 2026 | 1.8M | 27.3% | 2 | 3.4M | 49.9% | 1 | | Apr 2026 | 1.8M | 26.7% | 2 | 3.4M | 48.8% | 1 | | May 2026 | 1.8M | 24% | 2 | 4.1M | 53.6% | 1 | | Jun 2026 | 2.2M | 30.7% | 2 | 3.4M | 45.9% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | 1.8M | 26.2% | 2 | 3.4M | 48% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | 2.2M | 26.3% | 2 | 4.1M | 47.9% | 1 | | Sep 2026 | 1.5M | 23.2% | 2 | 3.4M | 51.8% | 1 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using JD Sports’ and Sports Direct’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading. - **JD Sports**: Measured on the search term “jd sports”. - **Sports Direct**: Measured on the search term “sports direct”. - [JD Sports profile](/demand/uk/brands/jd-sports) - [Sports Direct profile](/demand/uk/brands/sports-direct) - [All shoe retailers in the United Kingdom](/demand/uk/categories/uk-shoe-retailers): The set both shares are measured inside, 7 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is JD Sports or Sports Direct more popular in search? In September 2026, Sports Direct had more branded searches than JD Sports among shoe retailers in the United Kingdom. Sports Direct had about 3.4 million branded searches, while JD Sports had 1.5 million. Sports Direct made up 51.8% of all shoe retailer searches we track, and JD Sports accounted for 23.2%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "JD Sports vs Sports Direct: Which is searched more in the United Kingdom?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/compare/jd-sports-vs-sports-direct This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/compare/jd-sports-vs-sports-direct. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.