What does it mean for a team, the Deceuninck-Quick Step in this case, Having had the world champion at home? And what does it mean to have him again? In this world apart, where teams receive no television rights or ticket revenue and sponsors invest huge sums without any verifiable return, Taking a dive into a team's marketing can offer new insightsAnd if the person responsible for these strategies is also a friend, Alessandro Tegner, whom I met twenty years ago when he was in charge of communications for Mapei and now also owner of AT Communication, the journey ends up turning into a long dive.
«When you have the world champion – says Tegner, opening with Davide Bramati – the perception of the team is different, because that shirt attracts attention. Plus Julian (Alaphilippe, ed.) is generous and people like that. But he's also a champion who has to stay focused, so we try to stress him as little as possible. Few events, three important things a year so that it can do its job well. And all around there is our…».
Here, good… What do you do for a living?
Good question, I ask myself the same question. Lots of marketing, communications oversight, and sponsor relations. It's all interconnected.Partners are interested in potential activations, so we try to create contact between the sponsor and the marketing activity. Then there's Wolfpack, which started as something between us and is now becoming a brand that makes us recognizable..
Cycling is incredibly popular in Belgium. Is it also popular with companies?
Companies they choose and use the team for their campaignsBut behind the scenes, there is a lot of preparatory work on our part. so that the team can become a driving force for those who invest in itThere's sponsor marketing with custom-made assets, and then there's team marketing.
Did it help you to have worked with the press before?
Those my age in the teams have acquired a complete smattering of knowledge. We have experienced the transition from analog to digital and the transformation of teams into companiesFrom 2006 to 2014 I also handled public relations for sponsors at the races, creating campaigns to promote the team. So I understood how the mechanism worked.
Do you get along well with Patrick Lefevere?
Like all charismatic leaders, It leaves a lot of autonomy, but in exchange obviously demands resultsWe talk every day. When I arrived in this group with Bettini, Guercilena, Bramati and a few others, I wasn't betting I'd last six months. It was a challenge. Instead, I'll soon be celebrating my 20th birthday.The Mapei experience and those years of experimenting with how to frame a team like a company proved invaluable.
And in the meantime you even learned to speak Flemish…
I like languages. In the team we use English, because Patrick he always wanted to maintain an international levelI always speak Italian with him. But understanding a conversation in Flemish, with the mechanic or with the sponsor, is an important way to enter their social fabricCreating harmony and synergies has always been my credo.
Belgium and Italy.
Belgium and Veneto. I find affinity between the two work culturesThe economic fabric of Belgium's Silicon Valley—between Ghent, Kortrijk, and Bruges—resembles that of the Conegliano and Montebelluna area, where I live. Where the work culture is still important.
Let's go back to the world champion.
This year he won four races. A stage at the Tirreno. The Fleche Wallonne. The first stage of the Tour wearing the yellow jersey. The world championship. But he also finished in the top five 14 times. We let him run free, knowing how much that shirt weighs and next year it will be the sameSponsors understand. We will be doing our photo sessions in January and February and then we'll leave him alone.
Is this really enough?
We're trying to streamline the promotion of it. Furthermore, once the fixed spaces are removed, We ask him for timeframes in which we can possibly do something. In December, we plan the races and the related activities.After Liège, for example, we carried out two very important marketing activities with Lidl and at Julian's house with installations by our sponsors. And then two more during the year.
Does Julian always lend himself?
He is as you see him. He is so attached to this team, that when he crossed the finish line of the Tour stage, he went to Patrick and asked him if he was happy.
The team has let several riders go, tempted by higher offers. Was there ever a risk of losing Alaphilippe?
In today's cycling, whoever has Pogacar, Roglic, Van der Poel, Van Aert and Alaphilippe will hardly let them go. He's also a character, he knows how to involve, it's easy to keep him tied to you. It's a great inspiration for sponsors, riders aren't chosen just for their number of victories. He has a wonderful relationship with all of us and with Lefevere himself.
You have your own agency, you're an important part of the team, what's Alessandro Tegner missing?
If I have to tell you the truth, I miss the relationship with journalists, which over the years has allowed me to have important human relationships with some of themBut I do a wonderful job. I'm proud of my AT Communication and my staff. See you on Saturday at Lombardia. The season isn't over yet, and we're already almost thinking about how to start again.
