Cycling Market - UAE secure their future whilst Visma might gamble on theirs; Transfer season officially open
CyclingFriday, 07 August 2026 at 20:06
Transfer season is officially open. On the 1st of August, transfers could finally begin to be publicly announced by their teams. Whilst not many have, we've got some interesting moves already confirmed; whilst a very interesting rumour has gained momentum throughout the week.
Contract Extensions
You can follow the previous instance of the Cycling Market. During and after the Tour de France, several big names have renewed with their teams, desperate bids to secure their future with some of their best performers.
UAE Team Emirates - XRG are no exception. The Emirati team is not oblivious to the talent of Isaac del Toro, now a stage winner, podium finisher and youth classification winner at the Tour.
Del Toro has confirmed even further his talent as a Grand Tour rider at his debut Tour and his relationship with Tadej Pogacar is also something that has marked the race.
With this perfect scenario on UAE's hands, Del Toro has become a top priority. He has now been renewed all the way into 2031, the year after Pogacar's current contract ends. This could signal a lesser intent in the pursuit of Paul Seixas as UAE secure their second big leader in the long-run.
| Published | Rider | Team | Until |
| 2026-08-06 | BERASATEGI Xabier | Euskaltel - Euskadi | 2028 |
| 2026-08-06 | DEL TORO Isaac | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | 2031 |
| 2026-08-04 | MARTÍN Gotzon | Euskaltel - Euskadi | 2028 |
Official transfers
Some transfers have been announced since the opening of the transfer market, although only a fraction out of those that have been rumoured over the past few months. Hours before the 1st of August however, a few had been confirmed in the UCI website.
More noticeably, the mid-season transfer for Victor Langellotti. The rider from Netcompany INEOS has ended his contract with the team, something agreed by both parties, and has joined XDS Astana with immediate effect - with the upcoming Vuelta a España, starting in his home country of Monaco, likely being a determining factor.
Some teams have put their focus on immediately signing some of the youngsters from their development programs. EF Education-EasyPost has also conducted a mid-season signing for Juan Felipe Rodríguez whilst Gavin Sherry will join the team in 2027.
Lotto-Intermarché have confirmed the signing of three of their under-23 riders in the meantime as well: Milan Donie; Kamiel Eeman and Victor Vaneeckhoutte.
Valentin Madouas' departure from Groupama - FDJ was already known and it has now been confirmed that he will move to Cofidis in 2027. The Paris Olympics silver medalist will become a leader in a separate French project. Lidl-Trek's Tim Torn Teutenberg will join Soudal - Quick-Step as one of its sprinters, albeit most likely a leadout man for either Tim Merlier or Paul Magnier.
Mikel Landa will be joining Euskaltel - Euskadi on a two-year deal, an ambitious project in which the Basque veteran looks to bring the team up to its old level.
Mauro Schmid has been the first confirmed signing of Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team, with the Tour de France winner reportedly signing on a major contract. The aim for UCI points and big wins was a major draw from the Swiss team.
Lastly Alpecin - Premier Tech also announced a round of big signings with Ivan García Cortina, Casper van Uden and Madis Mihkels all joining the team from 2027 onwards, boosting its sprint and classics ranks.
Mauro Schmid's move to Pinarello has been the most prominent of the opening week of the transfer market
Read also
Fabio Jakobsen heading to Visma?
According to Daniel Benson, Netcompany INEOS' Artem Shmidt will be heading to NSN Cycling Team in 2027, marking yet another departure from the British team. However the most prominent rumour that has been circling over the past week has been that of Fabio Jakobsen.
On the 3rd of August, his contract with Team Picnic PostNL has been officially terminated, and his future is still an unknown. However, it has been made very clear that there are contacts with Team Visma | Lease a Bike.
The Dutch sprinter has not taken a pro win in over two years and has largely struggled through the past seasons to be competitive in the peloton. It is likely that there are conversations on what a potential deal could look like for the 29-year old who is looking to extend his career beyond 2026.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Not easy to see if Gery did something wrong on purpose. Sounds more like a weak excuse that she could not follow Vollering. She could have lost a lot more time if it was not for Longo- Borghini
DareDevil08-08-2026 - problem is UAE just getting better and visma getting worse and Jonas seems totally defeated and given up. Visma dont have what it takes their ruined too so i think we need to wait for Decathlon and seixas. Then theres del toro to at uae which they made into a star already.miguel08-08-2026
- problem is UAE just getting better and visma getting worse and Jonas seems totally defeated and given up. Visma dont have what it takes their ruined too so i think we need to wait for Decathlon and seixas. Then theres del toro to at uae which they made into a star already.miguel08-08-2026
- Big thanks to Demi, Kasia, Elisa, and the rest of the women's peloton for delivering awesome racing and amazing feelings. You gals are the antidote to the borefest by the "esteemed" UAE Team and the Slovenian mutant!
vannpelt08-08-2026 - Yeah, I agree....PogiSloFans08-08-2026
- Sadly i think he is right. Jonas looked defeated and more importantly his desire is not in it anymore judging by his wife comment. Vingegaard likely wont even beat del toro anymore.miguel08-08-2026
- It's sad that Gery's positioning has caused bad feeling between the teams (and she hasn't had the right of reply yet). But whatever happened before the decisive climb, the confrontation was after the stage, not during it, as this article states.Hills3308-08-2026
- Gratuliere, Felix! Super Leistung, Bravo!!RidesHills08-08-2026
- This race (today) and this race (the tour) are incredible cycling. Just fabulous to see such amazing riders pushing each other to and past their limits, the strategy, the competition, the quality of it all.RidesHills08-08-2026
- Soon nobody but the Tate’s fanclub and Mou will be watching the men’ race anymore if things don’t change.Mistermaumau08-08-2026
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