JD Sports is planning to close about 175 Hibbett stores across the U.S. over the next three years to focus on fewer, more profitable locations. The British retailer bought Hibbett , an Alabama-based sporting goods chain, for about $1.1 billion in 2024 as part of its push to rapidly expand in North America and strengthen its position in the fast-growing sneaker and sportswear market. At the time, Hibbett operated nearly 1,200 stores across the U.S., with a heavy focus on smaller Southeast markets. But since then, it’s been dealing with tougher competition, especially from Dick’s Sporting Goods, which bought Foot Locker for $2.5 billion and has been doing well with its bigger, experience-focused House of Sport stores, CoStar reports. Now, roughly two years after the acquisition, JD Sports is reworking its approach by cutting back on smaller, underperforming stores and focusing instead on stronger locations.…