New Investigation Reveals Decathlon’s Extensive Links to Uyghur Forced Labor

Research and analysis from the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOC) has supported a major investigation exposing French sports retailer Decathlon’s extensive involvement in Uyghur forced labor through its Chinese manufacturing partner. The investigation, published by the French national TV program Cash Investigation and the investigative outfit Disclose, revealed systematic exploitation of Uyghur workers and the use of cotton from the Xinjiang region, where the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been documented to engage in widespread human rights abuses.

According to the investigation supported by Dr. Adrian Zenz, Senior Fellow and Director in China Studies at VOC, Decathlon’s second-largest Chinese supplier, the Qingdao Jifa Group, is deeply embedded in the CCP’s forced labor transfer program. The investigation found that Decathlon purchased €43 million (close to $45 million) worth of clothes from Jifa in 2022 alone.

The investigation also exposed disturbing evidence of both child and Uyghur forced labor in Decathlon’s supply chain. 

Jifa’s Xinjiang subsidiary, Xinjiang Xirong Clothing, received 29 million yuan (approximately $4 million) in government subsidies to “train ethnic minorities from Xinjiang.” The factory is located in the Yengisar industrial park, where documented evidence shows the systematic transfer of Uyghur farmers under pressure from Chinese officials. The investigation found that workers face the constant threat of internment if they refuse state-sponsored work placements.

Furthermore, the investigation revealed the transfer of Uyghur workers to Jifa facilities in Shandong province, 4,000 kilometers from their homes. Hidden camera footage and social media evidence revealed that Jifa factories producing Decathlon products actively recruit transferred workers from Xinjiang, with government subsidies supporting these forced labor transfers. ​​Meanwhile, in Yengisar, what authorities describe as a “vocational training center” operates less than a kilometer from Jifa’s subsidiary factory. The facility enforces what school documents describe as a “military-style environment” where students perform mandatory patriotic rituals and undergo intensive Mandarin language training. 

“These vocational training schools particularly target young Uyghurs for indoctrination, cultural assimilation, and mandatory work assignments after graduation,” says Dr. Zenz. “And this is a form of brainwashing.”

Particularly concerning is the revelation about cotton sourcing. A Jifa manager confirmed that cotton used in Decathlon products “may come from Xinjiang,” where over half a million Uyghurs have been forced to pick and process cotton. Even more troubling, the manager disclosed that “the cottons are chosen by Decathlon,” contradicting the company’s public claims about responsible sourcing practices. 

During an undercover visit to Jifa’s Sanzhiwang factory, investigators also documented a 12-year-old girl assembling Decathlon polo shirts—well below China’s legal working age of 16. 

The findings come as the European Union prepares to implement new regulations banning products made with forced labor by 2027, following similar measures already in place in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Despite a 2021 inquiry from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights questioning both companies about potential forced labor in their supply chains, Decathlon has continued its relationship with suppliers implicated in the exploitation of Uyghur workers.

VOC’s research has consistently exposed forced labor practices in Xinjiang and their connection to global supply chains. In December 2024, VOC revealed how China’s agricultural sector in Xinjiang is more extensively tainted by forced labor than previously known. Earlier that year, VOC’s investigation into Volkswagen’s controversial audit in Xinjiang played a crucial role in the company’s decision to exit the region. VOC continues to lead efforts to document and expose the systematic use of forced labor as part of the CCP’s broader campaign of repression against the Uyghur people.

For press inquiries, please contact Michal Harmata, VOC’s Director of Communications, at michal.harmata@victimsofcommunism.org or (202) 629-9500.

Photo: A Decathlon store in Sydney, Australia by Maksym Kozlenko via CC BY-SA 4.0.