The Austrian anti-trust authorities have given the green light for Red Bull’s takeover of the Bora-Hansgrohe team, with full details of how the energy drink will transform the team due to be revealed later in the 2024 season.
In a brief note published on Monday, the Austrian Bundeswettbewerbsbehörde (Federal Competition Authority) said no formal request to review the deal was lodged before the January 26 deadline, effectively giving the deal the green light.
Early in January, the Austrian Federal Competition Authority records revealed that Red Bull GmbH, intends to make an ‘indirect acquisition of a controlling interest of 51% in RD pro cycling GmbH & Co KG and RD Beteiligungs GmbH.’
The two companies own and manage the Bora-Hansgrohe team and are owned or controlled by team manager Ralph Denk, his family and other partners.
“With today’s decision, we have cleared an important hurdle. The foundations of our partnership with Red Bull are now officially in place. This is the green light we’ve been waiting for to go ahead with the formalities and many specific parts of the collaboration,” Denk said in a brief statement from the Bora-Hansgrohe team.
“Everyone in cycling knows how important the basics and preparation are for success. So, we are now taking this step with the necessary consideration and resolution. We will present the further details of our partnership in the course of the season.”
There have been reports that Red Bull will become the title sponsor of the team despite Bora and Hansgrohe recently extending their title sponsorship contracts until 2027.
Denk is expected to remain as team manager as part of the Red Bull agreement.
Bora-Hansgrohe signed Primož Roglič from Jumbo-Visma for 2024, making them a true Tour de France. The team allowed Cian Uijtdebroeks to join rivals Visma-Lease a Bike after a contract dispute but their 2024 roster includes Australian sprinter Sam Welsford, Aleksandr Vlasov, Dani Martínez, Jai Hindley, Lennard Kämna and Bob Jungels.
Many were surprised by Red Bull’s decision to move into team ownership. The energy drink brand has preferred to sponsor individual athletes such as Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers), Blanka Vas (SD Worx), Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) and most recently Zoe Backstedt (Canyon-Sram) but they also own a Formula 1 team and several European football teams.
However, the arrival of Red Bull is expected to have a ‘major impact’ on the rider transfer market for 2025, according to…
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