Dive Brief:

• Dick’s Sporting Goods submitted a bid for 17 Sports Authority stores, sources told Reuters, far below the 180 locations one analyst speculated Dick’s would likely grab from its bankrupt rival.

• While other, single stores here and there also received bids, expected offers from regional sporting goods retailer Academy Sports + Outdoors as well as a rumored partnership between Modell’s and U.K. sports retailer Sports Direct International did not emerge.

• Bids for Sports Authority stores were due Thursday night, and bids for the retailer’s intellectual property were due Monday night. An auction is scheduled for next week, and the presiding bankruptcy court judge will approve any final sale.

Dive Insight:

Atlhough Sports Direct International and New York-based Modell’s Sporting Goods were reportedly in talks regarding a potential joint effort to acquire some 200 Sports Authority stores, the U.K. company warned investors last week that the country’s so-called “Brexit” vote to leave the European Union would hit hard in part because of the falling pound, making its U.S. dollar-based Asia sourcing significantly more expensive. 

Had the Modell’s/Sports Direct deal materialized, the Sports Authority brand likely would have remained intact, according to reports. But with Dick’s the major bidder and other merchants (including furniture retailers) bidding on single stores, the Sports Authority name will likely meet its end.

Had Dick’s successfully bid on 80 Sports Authority stores without competitors within a 10-to 25-mile radius, it could have gained $500 million in incremental sales, investment bank Canaccord Genuity speculated last month. That estimate blew away earlier forecasts suggesting that Dick’s could gain some $370 million in sales. Still, Dick’s is set to gain some market share with Sports Authority’s exit from the segment.

Dick’s itself is suffering somewhat from market saturation in the space, and may have decided against biting off more Sports Authority stores than it could chew. There are too many sportswear stores in the U.S., according to a recent note from Credit Suisse: The bank looked at of 50 U.S. retail chains and found some 13,400 sports-related chain stores were open last year, up 11% from 2011. There's also competition from Amazon and the big box stores that helped fell Sports Authority. 

Other sporting goods stores have exited the marketplace in recent months. Finish Line is closing stores and regional chain Sport Chalet has closed all stores as its parent reorganizes under bankruptcy protection—which also included closings of some Eastern Mountain Sports and Bob’s Stores.