Tinkoff are one of the sport’s galactic teams with several star riders. How much does it cost to run a team like this?
The team’s annual report and accounts were published online recently at the CVR, Denmark’s register of companies. Let’s take a closer look at the team’s budget, its ownership and operational structures and more.
Team Sky’s annual accounts for the year ending 2015 have just been published and they report a budget cut for the first time since the team’s creation. Here’s a look at their budget, spending, wage bill and a comparison with other squads.
Today’s stage of the Giro features the sharp climb of the Forcella Mostaccin near the finish. The climb gets the attention because of the race yet the small town of Maser which lies at the foot of the hill is arguably more interesting because it’s central to the sport. This town and the area around it is host to Pinarello, Sidi, Campagnolo, Selle Italia and more, while Segafredo coffee and Oakley sunglasses all have connections to this small part of Italy. More than ever they’re crucial to the Italian economy.
Launched with a bold “game changer” headline and a series of co-ordinated press releases, tweets and pre-arranged interviews Velon have announced something. Quite what this means for cycling fans isn’t clear despite the extensive coverage today.
After looking at the wealthy World Tour team owners last week, the people who spend their money on the sport, now a chance to look at the millionaires who make money from the sport. As ever the point isn’t to gawk at wealth but to offer an introductory “follow the money” piece so you know who pulls the strings.
If the 2017 Tour de France does end up on the HC calendar for 2017 then a maximum of 14 out of 20 teams can come from the World Tour, meaning at least four World Tour teams won’t get an invitation to ride the Tour de France. The Tour is the biggest race with huge media coverage but every year even the most assiduous follower can forget a certain team is in the event. With this in mind which teams could be left out come July 2017?
If you’re into Schadenfreude then this could be a fun exercise but the real story behind this is the panic it will sow among several teams and sponsors.
The Abu Dhabi Tour is over and it’s been an event with as much politics and money as sand. This makes it all the more interesting, a poor race to watch but a rich one to ride. There are lessons to be learned, including some for established European races to take on board.
Ag2r La Mondiale’s latest set of accounts are out and the budget for the team in 2014 was €13.6 million, up 15% on the previous year.
Having looked at Team Sky’s accounts recently here’s a look at the numbers for the French team.
This week is supposed to tell us whether Europcar will continue as a team or not. Deadline after deadline has been pushed back but the point has been reached where the team’s riders cannot wait much longer.
In the short term the uncertainty has caused parts of the rider transfer market to jam up but beyond this is the prospect of losing a team that’s been enjoyable and innovative along the way.
Cycling has to change. Too many races resemble each other and don’t attract the audiences they did 20 years ago. The economic model isn’t strong enough. Teams and races are struggling. We need change.
This could be a synthesis of Oleg Tinkov’s pinot noir induced Twitter rants but it could also sum up the state of cycling over a century ago. The Tour de France was born out of desperation, the mother of all newspaper promotion stunts and the event launched by Henri Desgrange in 1903 has become the greatest asset in pro cycling. Why? Because it makes people dream.
If you’ve got the post-Tour blues, it’s normal. July is what we want cycling to be, a summer party with the best riders and saturation coverage. August reminds us what pro cycling really is, with small races, patchy coverage and the white noise of scandal and bickering over money.