Who could afford to sign Richard Carapaz? Transfer market options as speculation of EF exit emerges
CyclingTuesday, 18 August 2026 at 18:00
Rumours of a possible team change for Richard Carapaz are gaining traction again in the peloton. Johan Bruyneel has claimed the Ecuadorian will leave EF Education-EasyPost at the end of the current season, although the known contractual situation points the other way. Daniel Benson, a transfer-market specialist, takes a deep dive into his future.
According to the Olympic champion’s agent, there is currently no offer on the table for Carapaz to switch teams. He is also under contract with EF Education-EasyPost through the end of 2028.
That does not necessarily mean the reports about his future are wrong, as recent markets have shown contracts can be broken if a sufficiently strong financial proposal appears.
Who could afford to sign Carapaz
The main hurdle would be financial. Carapaz currently earns around €2.5–2.8 million per season, so any interested team would need to improve those terms, either via a higher base salary or a particularly attractive bonus structure.
That sharply reduces the number of possible destinations. Among the teams with the financial and sporting capacity to consider a move of this scale are UAE Team Emirates-XRG, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Decathlon CMA CGM, Lidl-Trek, Netcompany, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe and XDS Astana.
However, being able to cover the cost does not mean all of them are genuinely interested in the Ecuadorian. There is also another decisive factor: EF Education-EasyPost would need to receive compensation to break a contract that runs to 2028.
A two-year deal could mean between five and six million euros in salary, to which a potential transfer fee would have to be added. That could be around two million euros, or even higher if EF demanded compensation for a significant part of the remaining contract.
In that scenario, the total cost could land between six and twelve million euros, an extraordinary investment for a rider who will turn 34 next year.
The problem for EF Education-EasyPost
Timing would also matter. If a team arrived with an irresistible offer and managed to convince EF Education-EasyPost, the US outfit would have very little room to find a reliable replacement.
Carapaz is not only one of the team’s leaders: he is also a key source of wins and UCI points. Losing him at this stage of the season could seriously compromise EF’s sporting targets for 2027.
So while a significant cash offer may look attractive to the US structure, the question is how to immediately replace a rider of his calibre.
Richard Carapaz at the Tour de France
La Vuelta a España could be decisive
The rumours, in any case, do not seem to have emerged from nowhere. The possibility of Carapaz changing teams surfaced last season, when several squads inquired about his situation. Those contacts did not lead to anything concrete, but interest in the Ecuadorian has not disappeared.
Now all eyes are on La Vuelta a España. A big result, especially a podium in the Spanish race, could shift the landscape considerably.
Form at that level would further raise Carapaz’s market value and could prompt a team to make an extraordinary financial push to secure his services.
Recent market moves show these operations are not impossible. Remco Evenepoel, Derek Gee, Juan Ayuso and Cian Uijtdebroeks completed high-impact transfers in the second half of last year, proving that when there is enough money on the table, even long-term contracts can become negotiable.
For now, there is no known offer for Carapaz and his contract with EF Education-EasyPost remains in place until 2028. But the rumours are already circulating in the peloton, and the situation could change quickly after La Vuelta.
If the Ecuadorian shows again that he is ready to fight for the top places in a Grand Tour, it would be no surprise to see a team ready to open the chequebook. And in today’s cycling, when the financial offer is big enough, almost no rider seems completely untouchable.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- So another rider flies the coop, even a 20 yearold can see the mess this team is in. Hope NetCompany buy out the rest of the contract, move to Europe and rebuild from the top. Thomas has to be the 1st to go.
Senna196018-08-2026 - "How to Destroy a 50 million Cycling Team"abstractengineer18-08-2026
- He needed to sign WVA or MVDP, both of whom he knew pretty well from the Cyclocross scene and he did notabstractengineer18-08-2026
- Or Seixas or others coming up. Didn't say Froome or Roglic, quite the leap you take. Seixas rides LBL and the Tour, as does Remco, Tadej, Pidcock, and many more. I'd prefer to employ a full time rider for a full time salary.mij18-08-2026
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- Or even on the bike ;-) And not THAT good if you remember all his podcast cheap shots at certain riders.Jumpyjohn18-08-2026
- Some points here to consider. No matter how much money anyone makes, they are still free to decide whatever is theirs to decide. We can extend this discussion to for example, paying your taxes (in your own country). I would be interested to hear your opinion on this point which seems so relevant for someone with such an old-fashionioned opinion that I’m surprised you didn’t include it in your list of patriotic obligations. I am also quite sure that there are situations in which it becomes totally justifiable to refuse the kind of patriotism others attempt to impose on you (even if just tacitly through years of brainwashing). Now, maybe that’s hard to relate to cycling, but, having followed this exchange for a while now, it stands out to me that you are only particularly concerned about ONE person’s attitude to this and not the issue itself. It seems more like it’s just a good excuse to bash on someone you don’t like. Would you maybe care to prove your stance on this is based on principles by giving us a short review of other riders who avoided/refused representing their country in recent years and the validity of their reasons (at least where given, because it seems you’re also assuming a lot about Vingegaards’).Jumpyjohn18-08-2026
- This is a great signing for Pinarello. He will grow well there.Pedalmasher18-08-2026
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