Decathlon
Harm on record. Has recent confirmed harm to workers that it hasn't put right.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources
French sports retailer selling its own clothing, shoes and equipment.
In 2024, a 12-year-old girl was filmed working at a factory of Jifa Group, a key clothing supplier in China.
Also worth knowing
Decathlon hasn't put this right.
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No activewear brand selling new goods is Good yet. These are the strongest so far.
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Why it's graded Harm on record
- Not met: Meets 0 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 3 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries and forced or child labour. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- Holds the grade back: It's Harm on record because of a serious confirmed problem from the last 5 years that it hasn't put right: child labour, last recorded in 2024.
- Checks its own supply chain. Decathlon looks for problems in its own supply chain and publishes what it finds. It found forced labour in 2023 and is fixing it, so it doesn't count against the grade. Other problems on its record count against the grade: child labour in 2024 and a forced labour link in 2025. They're listed below under Confirmed issues.
Good requirements 0 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in countries such as China and Bangladesh, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Not met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: High-risk raw materials (cotton) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton
Red flags 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Decathlon names some of the countries it makes in: China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Portugal, Italy, Indonesia, Thailand, Türkiye, Morocco, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Romania. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Bangladesh | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Vietnam | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Türkiye | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| Indonesia | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Pakistan | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | High |
| Portugal | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Italy | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Thailand | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Morocco | Regular violations | Well below a living wage | Low |
| Sri Lanka | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Romania | Regular violations | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| CambodiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Modern slavery statement
- Doesn't show where its cotton comes from. Cotton is linked to forced labour in Xinjiang and Turkmenistan, and child labour in several growing regions, so it can't be graded Good until it traces or certifies it.
Research notes Decathlon designs its own-brand products and has them made by over 1,200 suppliers plus nine of its own production sites, across 45 countries; China, Vietnam and Bangladesh are the largest, but no shares by country are published. It grades factories A to E but has no living wage target, and scored 34/100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report. A 2025 investigation tied a major Chinese supplier to Uyghur forced labour and child labour.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report | Listed | Scored 34 out of 100 in the 2026 Ethical Fashion Report (11th edition), assessed from public information only. View |
| Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution) | Listed | Scored 64.5 out of 250 (26%) in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, up from 46.5 in 2019. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Listed | Company profile lists stories on Uyghur forced labour (China), migrant workers in India and Taiwan, and poverty wages in Eastern Europe; 4 response requests, 75% answered. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Decathlon SE files a group modern slavery statement; the 2023 statement covers own-brand production at supplier sites in 44 countries and reports 5 forced labour alerts. View |
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Problem found | 2025 Disclose / Cash Investigation / Follow the Money investigation linked key supplier Jifa Group to Uyghur forced labour and child labour. View |
Confirmed issues 3
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Link through a supplierA 2025 investigation by Disclose, France 2's Cash Investigation and Follow the Money linked Jifa Group, a key Decathlon clothing supplier in China, to Uyghur labour transfers, including a video of a recruiter inviting Uyghurs to work at a Jifa factory in Shandong where Decathlon tags were visible (Follow the Money, 2025). Source · archived copy | NoDecathlon confirmed Jifa is a direct supplier but denied links to its Xinjiang subsidiary and said it would act only if the facts were proven; no remedy has been reported. |
| 2024 | A 2025 joint investigation by Disclose, France 2's Cash Investigation and Follow the Money filmed a 12-year-old girl working on a Decathlon polo shirt in 2024 at Yanggu Jifa, a factory of Jifa Group, a key Decathlon clothing supplier in China (Disclose, 2025). Source · archived copy | NoDecathlon confirmed Jifa is a direct supplier and said it would act only if the facts were proven; no remedy has been reported. |
| 2023 | Decathlon's own modern slavery statements report confiscated passports at a Taiwan supplier (2020) and recruitment fees, deception and dormitory restrictions found at suppliers in Taiwan, India and Pakistan (2023).Found and being fixed by the company Not counted against the grade while the company is actively fixing it, because it found and published it itself. | PartlyCorrective actions put in place (passports returned in Taiwan); Decathlon says it has no measures yet to make up workers' lost income. |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- Disclose reported in 2025 that unaudited subcontractors in Bangladesh making shoe parts for Decathlon pay very low wages, employ adolescents and operate in dangerous conditions; Decathlon said it condemns child and forced labour. Source
- The same 2025 investigation reported that a manager at a Jifa factory said cotton used for Decathlon clothing 'may come from Xinjiang'; Decathlon says all its cotton comes from more responsible sources. Source
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Ethical Fashion Guide 2026 (Baptist World Aid) · search the archive · 2026 Ethical Fashion Report: Decathlon 34/100, JD Sports 52/100, Under Armour 26/100, ASOS 40/100
- Decathlon profits from Uyghur forced labour in China (Disclose) · search the archive · Jifa Group, a key Decathlon supplier, used Uyghur labour transfers; 12-year-old filmed at a Jifa factory in 2024; Decathlon's denial
- Top Decathlon supplier profits from Uyghur forced labour (Follow the Money) · archived copy · Decathlon bought over EUR 43m from Jifa in 2022; joint investigation with Disclose and Cash Investigation; no supplier suspension reported
- Decathlon: revelations on a champion of exploitation (Disclose) · search the archive · 1,264 subcontractors and nine own sites; main countries China, Vietnam, Bangladesh; unaudited Bangladesh shoe subcontractors
Published by Decathlon or its owner
- Decathlon Modern Slavery Statement 2023 · search the archive · Supplier sites in 44 countries; 86.7% of sites rated A-C; forced labour alerts and recruitment fees found; no living wage target
- Decathlon Modern Slavery Statement 2020 · search the archive · Passports returned to workers at a Taiwan supplier after corrective action, with monthly checks
- Decathlon: 10 questions about Decathlon's sustainable development · search the archive · Over 1,200 suppliers in 45 countries (end 2025), nine own sites; production teams in China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Portugal, Italy etc.
Company details
- Headquarters
- France
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Decathlon ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/decathlon, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Harm on record means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Decathlon.