Abstract: Using the listed companies in the A-share sports industry from 2009 to 2022 as research samples, this paper examines how digital transformation empowers the high-quality development of sports enterprises, the heterogeneity of its effects, and the specific mechanism pathway. The conclusions are drawn that: digital transformation significantly fosters the high-quality development of sports enterprises, providing key support for the formation of new quality productive forces in the sports industry; the effects of digital transformation on high-quality development are more pronounced in high-tech and larger-scale sports enterprises with high supply chain efficiency that are in the growth or maturity phase, indicating a "gilding the lily" advantage capture bias in its effectiveness; digital transformation can offer profound intrinsic motivation for the cultivation of new quality productive forces and high-quality development of sports enterprises through multiple pathways, such as enhancing digital outcomes and innovation efficiency, alleviating financing constraints, and improving operational efficacy. Based on these findings, this paper suggests that at the government level, targeted and detailed guidance should be provided for the digital development of the sports industry, emphasizing the cultivation of "digital+sports" interdisciplinary talents in higher education, and encouraging the synergistic advantages of digital transformation in the sports industry chain. At the enterprise level, there is a need to plan strategic visions for digital development, establish open and cooperative digital ecosystems, and strengthen the training and introduction of digital talents.