UK Sport warned British Cycling against Shell sponsorship and its possible impact on future public funding

British Cycling’s controversial partnership with fossil fuels giant Shell caused UK Sport to issue a warning to the then-CEO Brian Facer in which the national sport body expressed “considerable concern” about the sponsorship and its implications.

The letter, revealed through a freedom of information request from satirical and current affairs print magazine Private Eye, claimed that the partnership with Shell “potentially exposes UK Sport, the National Lottery and British Cycling to legal and reputational risk”.