Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley to step down as CEO of retail group but remains in control                

Mike Ashley: Started out with a sports store in a town west of London in the 1980s and took over the CEO role in 2016.

Mike Ashley is set to step down as chief executive of the sportswear retail group he founded nearly 40 years ago, handing the baton to his daughter's partner.

Passing on the CEO position to his future son-in-law, Michael Murray, is a typically unconventional move from Ashley.

His frank comments about rivals and politicians, a love of casinos, stories of settling banker fees by playing bar games and clips on YouTube showing him sinking a pint of beer in a few seconds have fed an image of a maverick far removed from the typical British business chief.

Frasers Group, formerly called Sports Direct, announced the move, saying that its board was in talks to "transition" the CEO role from Ashley to Mr Murray, the group's current "head of elevation" over the course of the 2021-22 financial year.

Mr Ashley, 56, is not, however, going away. Frasers said that if he did give up the CEO role he would remain on the board as an executive director. He also retains 64% of the group's equity.

Mr Ashley, who started out with a sports store in a town west of London in the 1980s, took over the CEO role in 2016. That was the same year that MPs criticised the group for "Victorian" working conditions and investors and media highlighted its poor corporate governance.

Sports Direct responded by becoming more open and told workers they would receive back pay after wages fell short of a legal minimum. 

He is also the owner of Premier League soccer club Newcastle United but is unpopular with some supporters. “Ashley has often been unpredictable, outspoken and unco-operative, so Murray might bring a sense of order to the boardroom," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

Frasers reported a 29.4% rise in core earnings in the year to April 25 as a strong online performance offset a hit from store closures due to the Covid.

  

• Reuters