Schultz has been president of retail at Middle Eastern group Al-Futtaim since 2019 and was chief financial officer at British home improvement chain Kingfisher's do-it-yourself business, B&Q.

JD Sports earlier this month named Andrew Higginson as chairperson, replacing Peter Cowgill who was ousted in May over issues related to internal governance and controls.

Cowgill managed the group since Barry Bown stepped down as the chief executive officer in 2014.

The company, which owns brands such as Speedo and Cloggs, in June laid out plans to overhaul its corporate governance structure and internal controls.

JD Sports did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Schultz's appointment could be announced within a few days, according to the Sky News report.

(Reporting by Amna Karimi in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)