July 26 (Reuters) - Britain's largest sportswear retailer JD Sports Fashion will name Regis Schultz, former finance head of B&Q, as its chief executive officer, Sky News reported on Tuesday.

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 has 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.

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

A JD Sports spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the process to recruit a CEO was ongoing and the company would "update the market further when appropriate".

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