As if it didn’t pose enough of a challenge to smaller, independent team dealers and specialty soccer shops, Dick’s Sporting Goods is now opening what it is calling experiential Soccer Shops in select locations this month. This comes at the same time the full-line retailer is expanding its national footprint with the opening of its first Dick’s House of Sport, a new concept store in Victor, NY.

Competing with soccer specialty stores, Dick’s Soccer Shops are opening this month in 34 select Dick’s flagship locations. The shops will offer in-store soccer experts to help customers find the right equipment, updated in-store elements, including a cleat shop, licensed jersey cubes and soccer trial cages in select locations.

Also debuting this month, Dick’s House of Sport features a 17,000-square-foot outdoor turf field, running track, rock-climbing wall, batting cage with HitTrax technology, golf hitting bays with TrackMan simulators, a putting green, the company’s first House of Cleats that will rotate product, a health and wellness destination to help customers with recovery and wellness, and a service area for breaking in gloves, stringing lacrosse sticks and building and repairing bikes. The retailer will also showcase athletic and outdoor apparel brands, a wide assortment of footwear, team sports gear and golf and fitness equipment.

The location is at the Eastview Mall in Victor, NY. Later this year, the company will open its second Dick’s House of Sport in Knoxville, TN.

In addition, Dick’s Sporting Goods Warehouse Sale locations will offer deep discounts on footwear and apparel at 70 percent off or more.  The two Dick’s Sporting Goods Warehouse Sale locations to open are in Concord, NC and Plano, TX.

This month Dick’s is also opening nine newly redesigned Golf Galaxy locations and expanded technology offerings in 62 additional Golf Galaxy locations in select U.S. cities. These new additions will bring approximately 260 collective jobs to communities through the hiring of full-time, part-time and temporary employees for its stores.