Pizza Hut is being sold for $2.7bn (£2bn) after a prolonged struggle with fierce competition from rivals such as Domino’s, Papa John’s and Little Caesars – a deal that follows the collapse of its UK operations last year.
Yum! Brands, the fast-food giant that owns KFC and Taco Bell, announced it would sell the struggling pizza chain to private equity firm LongRange Capital for $1.5bn, while Yum China Holdings will buy the mainland China operations for $1.2bn.
“Yum! Brands sells struggling Pizza Hut chain for $2.7bn after UK closures and intense competition.”
The decision ends months of speculation after Yum! first revealed it was exploring a sale in November 2025, following several quarters of declining US same-store sales. The US market accounts for 40% of Pizza Hut’s total international sales.
“Under LongRange and Yum China, Pizza Hut will be well positioned for future growth with ownership that brings deep expertise in the restaurant industry,” said Chris Turner, Yum! Brands chief executive.
The chain’s troubles have been driven by intensifying competition from revival chains like Domino’s, Papa John’s, and Little Caesars, which have aggressively discounted their offerings to win over price-sensitive consumers as inflation remains sticky. Smaller, more nimble regional chains have also adapted faster to changing habits in the “pizza wars”. At the same time, the rise of third-party delivery apps has flooded the market with alternative options, diluting Pizza Hut’s historic dominance.
Pizza Hut was founded in 1958 by two brothers in Wichita, Kansas. It was bought by PepsiCo in 1977 and later spun off into Yum! Brands in 1997.
The sale comes less than a year after Yum! bought Pizza Hut’s UK operations in October last year, when the firm running the dine-in restaurants, DC London Pie, fell into administration. That financial collapse shut 68 restaurants and put more than 1,200 jobs at risk, though about 64 restaurants were saved as part of a rescue deal.
“Pizza Hut is one of the most iconic restaurant brands in the world, and we are proud of the important role it has played in Yum!’s history,” said Turner. By divesting the chain, Yum! intends to streamline its corporate focus on its remaining core brands, KFC and Taco Bell.
The transactions with LongRange Capital and Yum China are both expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary regulatory approvals.