In the wake of the Cian Uijtdebroeks contract saga, Soudal-QuickStep CEO Patrick Lefevere has raised the idea of professional cycling implementing a rider transfer system akin to that used in European football.
20-year-old Uijtdebroeks has made the headlines since Saturday, when Jumbo-Visma claimed to have signed him on a four-year deal before his current squad Bora-Hansgrohe countered with a claim that he remains under contract until December 2024.
His agency A&J All Sports have further claimed that the talented young Belgian has already terminated his Bora-Hansgrohe contract, while the German team have reportedly demanded a €1 million buyout fee to release him.
Professional cycling world doesn’t have a transfer system like European football, where teams can purchase players for fees, but the concept of riders moving teams before the end of their contract isn’t a new one.
Primož Roglič transferred from Jumbo-Visma and Bora-Hansgrohe after he struck a deal with the teams and secured UCI approval for the move, reportedly paying a fee of three million Euro to Jumbo-Visma.
Other riders have made similar moves in the past, including Bradley Wiggins when he moved to Team Sky in 2010. WorldTour teams have ‘bought’ talented young riders from smaller teams in the past, with Egan Bernal and Iván Sosa moving from Androni to Ineos Grenadiers. However Wout van Aert’s move from Vérandas Willems to Jumbo-Visma was more controversial, with the Belgian rider still locked in a legal battle to avoid paying compensation.
Lefevere, who earlier this year put a huge price tag on Remco Evenepoel amid interest from Ineos, told Het Nieuwsblad that cycling’s transfer model “isn’t sustainable”, saying that the system could move closer to something resembling that of football in future.
“Look, in the long run, the current system isn’t sustainable,” Lefevere said. “This can’t become a habit or else we have a problem. It will be impossible to present sponsors with a five-year project. If riders leave early, you’re left exposed.
“A transfer system like in football would give us the opportunity to build a war chest. Everyone is equal before the law. We discover young riders and don’t let them go mad. Then I think we could make some money from it if another team wants to take them.”
One counterargument to this system would be that the richest teams would hoard the top talent, as has been the case in European football with clubs like Manchester City, Real Madrid and Paris…
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