The game’s over for the Sports Authority in Queens and the rest of the country.
The bankrupt sporting goods retailer announced Thursday it would shutter all of its locations, including its store on Woodhaven Boulevard in Glendale and on Northern Boulevard in Long Island City.
Earlier this month, employees at both Queens locations vehemently denied previously published reports of the stores’ impending demise. Sports Authority, which filed for federal bankruptcy protection in March after incurring more than $1 billion in debt, initially indicated it would only close about a third of its shops; the Queens stores were to be spared.
The franchise, however, decided to liquidate the entire chain after failing to find a company to buy its stores, the Los Angeles Times reported. Instead, the company found buyers for its various assets including inventory and furniture. Sports Authority had put the leases for its Queens locations on the market earlier this month, according to The Real Deal.
More than 16,000 people are employed by the Sports Authority nationwide, the Los Angeles Times reported. Stores are expected to begin their going-out-of-business sales this week.
QNS contacted managers at the Glendale and LIC Sports Authority locations, both of whom declined to comment on the situation.
