World Cup spending helped spur modest second-quarter gains for Canadian Tire Corp. as its Sport Chek subsidiary posted an 8.0% comparable sales boost year over year during the period.

Canadian Tire said interest around the tournament was driven by in-store and online activations that helped bring soccer fans and new customers to SportChek, with fanwear, team sports and athletic footwear pushing the banner to its eighth consecutive quarter of comparable sales growth.

President and CEO Greg Hicks said the World Cup was a highlight of the quarter and cited Canadian Tire’s Jumpstart program, an initiative to build 25 community soccer fields across Canada by 2029, as a lasting corporate legacy beyond the tournament.

Overall, Canadian Tire reported a consolidated comparable sales increase of 0.7% in the quarter, while sales were up 6.3% on a two-year stacked basis. Menswear subsidiary Mark’s also contributed to growth, with comparable sales increasing 4.2%, led by industrial footwear, workwear and denim. Comparable sales at the Canadian Tire trademark banner were down 0.8%.

The results come as Canadian Tire continues its True North strategy, with the company pointing to increased use of personalized Triangle Rewards offers, e-commerce growth and investments in new store concepts as key priorities. Loyalty sales were up 3.1% in the first half of 2026, outpacing non-loyalty sales, while e-commerce sales increased 14% year over year.

The company also said it has completed 15 refreshed or expanded Canadian Tire stores and 15 new or refreshed stores across its other banners, while continuing to roll out new Destination Sport concepts at SportChek in the second half of the year.

Consolidated revenue rose 2.4% to $4.3 billion, while normalized diluted earnings per share increased 10.4% to $3.94. The company also lowered its full-year operating capital expenditure forecast to between $450 million and $500 million, from a previous range of $500 million to $550 million.

– Image courtesy of Canadian Tire