If the ongoing rumours prove to be true surrounding a merger between two of pro cycling’s biggest men’s teams, Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-QuickStep, one of Specialized or Cervélo and SRAM or Shimano would be forced to lose a spot among the upper echelons of the WorldTour.
Rumours broke of a merger between the two teams on September 24, and much of the attention since has focused on the potential movement of riders such as Primož Roglič, as well as who would become the title sponsor of the team.
The original rumours comprised two existing sponsors: Soudal, the European sealants, adhesives and polyurethane foams manufacturer; and Visma, the Norwegian business software and information technology-related development and consultancy, but two of the world’s biggest brands, Apple and Amazon, have also been rumoured to be coming on board. The latter Amazon is reportedly ready to plunge €15m into the team to become a co-title sponsor.
But what about equipment sponsors? Currently, Jumbo-Visma ride aboard Cervélo bikes; a sponsorship deal that was announced in October 2020, began on January 1, 2021, and was extended indefinitely later that same year. Toward the end of the 2022 season, the team swapped their agreement with Shimano, who supplied groupsets, wheels and sister-brand Lazer’s helmets, in favour of what was widely believed to be a more financially lucrative deal with SRAM, who now supply groupsets. The wheel supply moved to Cervélo’s sister brand Reserve, and Lazer continued to supply helmets.
Over at Soudal-QuickStep, Specialized provides the bikes, and has done so since 2006. Eight days before Jumbo announced the aforementioned ‘indefinite’ deal with Cervélo in 2021, Specialized committed to QuickStep until at least 2027 with Patrick Lefevre describing the brand as “impeccable as a partner”. Specialized also supplies the brand with its Roval wheels and cockpits, as well as S-Works tyres, shoes and helmets. Groupsets are supplied directly by Shimano in another longstanding deal that began in 2016.
If the two teams merge, it’s unclear what would happen to existing sponsorship agreements, but there wouldn’t be room for two groupset suppliers, two bike suppliers, two helmet suppliers and so on, so some brands would be forced to miss out.
There are a few scenarios that could play out. First, if as former UCI president Brian Cookson predicted when speaking to GCN, the merger is actually structured as a takeover, it’s likely that the team that is…
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