Popular high-street pizza chain Papa Johns could see hundreds of stores close over the next year in the UK.

It comes as the brand told investors to expect "additional strategic restaurant closures of low-performing restaurants" which could see 100 Papa Johns 524 UK locations close.

The pizza chain has not confirmed what the affected branches will be yet but did share that the closures were key to the company's long-term success with the UK being the second-biggest market.

The closures of Papa Johns come as the rising cost of ingredients and the cost of living crisis affected customers and businesses with fewer people eating out as often.

Papa Johns 'to close up to 1000' UK stores

In the UK, Papa Johns is the second largest pizza chain with Domino the biggest at 1,253 locations and Pizza Hut following with 150 branches.

The pizza chain first arrived in the UK in 1999 with its first location in Grays Essex and by 2013 it opened its 200th store.

If the chain goes ahead with the closures, it would follow the 22 Papa Johns stores that shut down last year.

But, 2023 also saw 15 new locations for the brand.

Discussing the closures, a spokesperson told The Sun: "As our second largest global market, the UK is critical to Papa Johns’s long-term success.

"As we work to fully optimize our restaurant operations and improve profitability across the market, we will continue evaluating the growth potential of our restaurants.

"This includes working collaboratively with our franchisees to strategically close low-performing locations when necessary, as well as continuing to invest in the right locations for the benefit of our customers.

"We will work to fully support team members through any transitions. 

"However, it’s important to note that no final decisions have been made at this time."