La shaded fusion between Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-Quick Step was the admission that things can't go on like thisThat the costs have become difficult to sustain even for the biggest teams and that to continue to dominate they need to have more and more of them, in the face of sponsors who are starting to ask themselves questions.
«I don't think they can continue like this year after year. "That would be a bit strange," Pogacar said from Singapore, speaking about the Jumbo. "There will also be some changes in 2024." Primoz goes to the BORA-Hansgrohe and with him they lose an important leaderIt's good that there are more teams that have a strong block for the Grand Tours, next year it won't be anymore Jumbo Visma against UAE EmiratesRemco will also be there and Ineos will also be competitive. This will only further enrich the Tour de France».
The treasure of the Tour
The last verb, used by Pogacar in reference to the technical content of the challenge, however also has other nuances: the gold rush is in full swing. In fact, the day after the presentation of the Tour de France (ASO photo in the opening), the Reuters news agency released surprising news: Five top teams are said to be in talks to organize an alternative cycling competitionThe goal is to limit the power of large organizers and allow more money to flow to the teams.
So far only Flanders Classics, according to its CEO Thomas Van der Spiegel, had ventilated the possibility of sharing the proceeds from television rights with the teamsWe are talking about the Belgian company that organizes 70 road races, including the Tour of Flanders, the World Cup and the Superprestige of cyclocross. The other dominant players in cycling, from ASO to RCS, have always preferred to avoid the discussion. ASO has never released information on the actual value of the Tour rights. However, it appears clear that for the group, which publishes L'Equipe and had among its flagships other magazines which were later closed, the Grande Boucle represents the main source of income.
The cost of the ticket
Teams are investing more and more, and it's understandable that sponsors are looking for ways to recoup, even partially, their costs. The question is whether this is possible in cycling as well.
Major professional team sports can rely on various sources of income. For example, there is ticket salesOn the one hand, it involves the maintenance of the plants, but it guarantees an important source of income. In the 60s an attempt was made to charge an entrance fee for Mont Ventoux and the same would theoretically be possible for Alpe d'Huez or MortiroloAccess should be controlled by hiring inspectors and installing gates, but we also need to ensure that the numbers don't start to decline. Fans could experience it as a real betrayal.
A substantial difference between cycling and other team sports is also that In no other world does the sponsor give the team its name, as happens here. Juventus is called Juventus, not Jeep. AC Milan is AC Milan, not Emirates. And while it's true that in the same race, multiple brands compete, not just two like in a football match, the stages of the Grand Tours have multiple intermediate finishes and rankings where more or less everyone can shine. Which sport provides hours and hours of live coverage for a team named after its sponsor?
TV rights
And then there are the television rights, the extent of which is objectively yet to be understood. In fact, apart from the Grand Tours and a few other classics, there are few races that manage to cover their costs.. For this reason and not for the sake of globalization, races are organized in the Emirates and in various deserts around the worldTo add resources that create wealth, but also allow for keep alive prestigious races such as the Tirreno-Adriatico and the Paris-NiceWill the organizers who make profits from the television rights share them with the teams? Probably not, as previous attempts have shown. to reform professional road cycling.
Therefore, as in 2012, here is once again the suggestion to create a parallel calendar, to free the teams from the power of the big organizers. It happened in golf and tennis, for example, where new tournaments were born and joined the historic ones.According to Reuters, among the teams involved there would be the Ineos Grenadiers and Jumbo-Visma, although the respective managers preferred not to comment. Same reaction from CVC Partners, the company that ran Formula One from 2006 to 2016 and in 2020 made a bid to manage Serie A football. The Reuters article says it's very close to making a new attempt.
«Cycling is a sleeping giant – Richard Plugge, the team manager of Jumbo-Visma, told Reuters – and deserves a business model improvedFor all stakeholders, but especially for the WorldTour teams. The only way to get there is cooperation».
The Belgian example
But are we sure that the cake to be divided is so large and that cycling fans are willing to pay to witness a spectacle that has been taking place on open roads for almost two centuries?
In Belgium they've digested it. The sensational redesign of the Tour of Flanders with the creation of the final circuit has allowed Flanders Classics to foresee paid areas, without however excluding the possibility for others to watch the race freelyIn cross-country races you pay to enter and to consume, but here we are talking about circuits that are easy to control and the sport is so popular that No one finds the need to pay for a service unusual.
The Italian example
In the rest of Europe, the situation is more complex: in Italy, without a doubt. Suffice it to say that the majority of television viewers tend to prefer cycling on a free-to-air or relatively inexpensive channel like EurosportThe costs of watching football leagues and similarly prestigious tournaments abroad are significantly higher. Those who purchase those rights (paying handsomely) know they can recoup a portion of the cost by charging viewers, who are guaranteed superior services.
How much would it cost Eurosport Italy to send reporters to the races to commentate live? And what impact would this have on subscription costs?
«As John Lelangue recently stated – he wrote in a blog of his from 2020 former UCI president Brian Cookson – Cycling has survived for more than 50 years in the way it survives today. There are no fewer riders or sponsors than in the 90s or 2000s. Why question a model that perhaps doesn't work perfectly, but that It has certainly evolved and developed over the years into something that is as close to an economic model as possible.? And while we fans may approve, disapprove, or ignore any person, product, government, or organization that pays for the show, It's the show we love and will continue to love. And the fact that, if you think about it, we don't pay much for it, makes it even better."
