From €25,000 to more than €600,000 - Women’s cycling’s huge financial leap in nine years clear from blockbuster transfer
Cycling
In 2018, Andreu Canals negotiated an annual salary of €25,000 for Mavi García at Movistar. The figure, recalled by the former president of the Balearic Cycling Federation and García’s first coach, puts a number on the transformation women’s cycling has undergone in recent years.
The difference between the two contracts exceeds €575,000 a year. Blasi’s salary will be more than 24 times what García earned in that deal, although the two individual agreements reflect different stages in their respective careers and a market that has evolved considerably. Movistar has committed to the Catalan rider on a three-season contract through the end of 2029, highlighting the level of investment leading figures in the women’s peloton can now command.
The same team will bring Paula Blasi on board in 2027 on a salary that, according to Marca, will exceed €600,000 per season. The timeline requires some clarification: nine years will separate García’s contract signing from Blasi’s arrival, while eight years will have passed between the negotiations and the announcement of Blasi’s signing. That span shows how the financial terms available to some of the best riders have changed. Today, they can secure deals that would have been unthinkable for many professionals less than a decade ago.
The growth of women’s cycling has been reflected in more professional teams, greater media attention for races and the emergence of new stars capable of attracting investment.
These two contracts offer a concrete measure of that progress, though they cannot be used to extrapolate salary growth across the entire peloton. The highest salaries show what the market can offer certain stars, but they do not, by themselves, describe the financial reality for all professional women cyclists.

Paula Blasi
Blasi, a long-term investment for Movistar
Paula Blasi will join Movistar after a season in which she has achieved top-level results. The Catalan rider has won the Amstel Gold Race and La Vuelta Femenina, and finished fifth at the Tour de France. That record strengthens her standing as one of Spain’s most promising riders and helps explain the scale of the deal that will keep her with the team for three seasons.
Her signing is also an investment in the future. With her contract running through the end of 2029, Movistar has secured the services of a rider who has already shown she can compete for major victories and still has room to develop.
The length of the deal provides stability as the team plans her sporting goals and supports her long-term career within a structure aiming to establish itself among the leading forces in women’s cycling.
Read also
€600,000 salary reflects growing market
The annual salary of more than €600,000, according to MARCA, reflects how the market values riders who combine results, potential and the ability to compete in the calendar’s biggest races. It is not simply a reward for past success, but also an investment in a rider who could become one of a team’s sporting pillars over several seasons.
The comparison with Mavi García puts that change into perspective without suggesting the two riders are directly comparable. In 2018, the €25,000 Canals negotiated for the Mallorcan rider reflected the financial terms of the time.
Nine years later, Blasi’s move to Movistar shines a light on a market offering its leading riders very different opportunities. Two contracts, two generations and the same team illustrate the evolution of a sport that has gained ground, visibility and investment.

Javier RampeCycling Journalist
Javier Rampe is a sports analyst with more than 15 years of experience. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Rome and a Diploma in Business Studies from the University of Cádiz. Despite coming from an academic background not particularly associated with cycling, his passion for both cycling and journalism was instilled in him from an early age. He grew up following Miguel Indurain and José María “El Chava” Jiménez. An admirer of Michael Robinson’s communication style and journalistic approach, he was inspired to pursue a degree in Journalism at the University of Buenos Aires, which he is currently completing.
He has always maintained close ties with the worlds of sport and culture, contributing from a young age to sports blogs and film and music review websites. His work has appeared in media outlets such as Cope, RAI, and Radio Con Vos. He is also the founder of the cycling-focused podcast El Contraanálisis and the football interview channel Días De Fútbol, dedicated to conversations with professional footballers.
In addition to his work at Ciclismoaldia, Javier has interviewed some of the most influential figures in modern cycling, including Alejandro Valverde and Tadej Pogačar, as well as key voices in anti-doping policy such as Alberto Yelmo, David Varillas, and Marcelo Milano. Marcos Maynar, in relation to the ‘Operación Ílex’ case, is also among the personalities he has interviewed. He enjoys conducting in-depth analysis of the cycling ecosystem and has attended major events such as Strade Bianche, the Vuelta a Andalucía, and Itzulia, as well as numerous national cyclo-cross races.
His background in economics, combined with extensive experience in marketing and corporate communications, drives his continuous study of positioning strategies and ensures that he always keeps his focus on crafting compelling and evocative headlines.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Who’s gifting grand tours at UAE? Defo not Pogi! Stage wins maybe.Lozza13-11-2026
- Sepp Kuss Vuelta 2023.Lozza13-11-2026
- they have no expertise with classics, they have no leaders in classics. the classics is dominated by the few Fuori Classe riders where other riders are left with scraps. the Hiring , the salaries dont make sense at all. Same problem as Man Utd. over paid players, egos, very little performanceabstractengineer13-11-2026
- Contract year means you gotta win, at least collect UCI points, helping be damnedabstractengineer13-11-2026
- Arensman is their best rider and he is paid very less in comparisonabstractengineer13-11-2026
- I'm not trying to argue with you but if you didn't see Del Toro struggling in the Tour I'll pay for some glasses for you lol. He struggled so much that Tadej missed winning stage 15, Tadej also dropped the pace along some stages to help Del Toro hold onto the podium. Now he may have been sick, that is a possibility, but he definitely struggled. You have a nice weekend as well brother.awp13-11-2026
- Im not copmaring him to jonas palmares...but current level of power and again like you even pointed out 19sec difference and on other ocassions del toro dropping him. Its evidently their close and based on both their different trajectory its self explanatory...where we are next year.And Del Toro didnt struggle if getting a podium in his first TDF at 22 year old is struggling you sure dont know how to be objective haha. But have a good weekend this is so dumb to discuss as its not even a discussin in reality as facts speak for themselves of what were actually speaking of - and self explanatory.miguel13-11-2026
- fingers crossed. my son has a poster of wout and mathieu battling each other at the beach at ostend up in his room. would be great to see them again there!Ketterechts13-11-2026
- This Giro is very strange in it's circular route. If you were to have stage starting in Trieste and ending atop Monte Zoncolan (end stage 20) you'd get a stage only 145 km long
Rafionain-Glas13-11-2026 - When Thomas gets the bullet from INEOS he can get a job as a comedian.
Senna196013-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment







