Tadej Pogacar is beginning to plan a 2027 season that could revolve around three major goals: winning a sixth Tour de France, reclaiming the rainbow jersey and returning to the Vuelta a España. UAE Team Emirates XRG is in Abu Dhabi this week for its planning meetings, where the Slovenian and team officials will define much of the sporting strategy for next season.
The meeting comes at a particularly important time for the Slovenian champion, who had to end his 2026 season early after crashing at La Vuelta. His schedule for next year has not yet been finalised, but the rider himself has already offered clues about his priorities. Chief among them is his intention to return to the Spanish Grand Tour, a race still missing from his palmarès and the scene of one of the most difficult episodes of his career.
According to Eurosport, Pogacar will discuss his programme with the rest of the Emirati team during these days in Abu Dhabi. Alongside welcoming new signings and meeting sponsors, the team will use the training camp to set its goals and outline the main priorities for the coming season.
Pogacar targets the Tour, the Vuelta and the World Championships
Pogacar has already indicated which races could command his attention in 2027. Speaking recently to Slovenian broadcaster RTV SLO, the rider said he would prefer to race the Giro d’Italia, but believes he must also return to the Vuelta to complete his set of Grand Tours.
“I’d prefer to race the Giro, but I’ll have to complete La Vuelta at some point. I think that will be my goal for next year: the World Championships, combined with the Tour and La Vuelta,” he said.
His comments point to a particularly demanding second half of the season. The Tour de France would once again be central to his calendar, as he targets a sixth overall victory, while the World Championships would offer him the chance to reclaim the title he could not defend in 2026. The Vuelta, meanwhile, would give him the chance to return to a race that ended abruptly for him this year and remains one of his major unfinished goals.
The 2026 edition of the Spanish Grand Tour left the Slovenian with a particularly bitter memory. A crash during stage 8 forced him to abandon after he fractured his C7 vertebra and left collarbone, with the latter injury requiring surgery. The incident also ended his hopes of winning a third consecutive rainbow jersey and claiming a sixth victory at Il Lombardia.
Despite that setback, the rider has recovered and resumed training. He is scheduled to return to competition on 29.11, when he will take part in the sixth edition of the Critérium de Beking in the Principality of Monaco, where he usually lives. The charity event combines cycling, public activities and social initiatives for children, and his partner, Urška Žigart, will also be there.
When will the 2027 season begin?
One of UAE’s first decisions will be when Pogacar returns to racing. After his 2026 season ended earlier than expected, the Slovenian could make his debut sooner than he did this year, when he began his campaign at Strade Bianche.
One possibility is the UAE Tour, scheduled for 15.02 to 21.02. The Emirati race would let him compete at home and open his season at an event he has already won three times. However, an earlier return at the Tour Down Under, which runs from 19.01 to 24.01 and opens the WorldTour calendar, has not been ruled out.
The Australian race organisers remain hopeful of welcoming the Slovenian champion. “We’re doing everything we can,” said Stuart O'Grady, director of the Tour Down Under.
For now, neither option has been confirmed. The decision will depend on how the team wants to structure Pogacar’s preparation and which goals it considers the priority during the first months of the season.
Tadej Pogacar abandoned the Vuelta a España after a crash on stage 8
Paris-Roubaix, the major Classics goal still to come
Once the season gets underway, the Classics campaign will present Pogacar with several more challenges. Paris-Roubaix stands out as one of his main goals for the first half of the year, as it is the only one of the five Monuments he has yet to win.
The Slovenian would return to the Hell of the North after finishing second in 2026. Victory in Roubaix would complete his collection of major Classics, following his win at Milan-San Remo last March.
In principle, the Italian race could be left off his 2027 programme, now that he has finally claimed the victory that had eluded him for so long. Instead, he is expected to defend his titles at the Tour of Flanders and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Both races suit his strengths and would see him start among the leading contenders.
It also remains to be seen whether he will include a one-week stage race. Of the seven races in that category considered major events, the Itzulia is the only one he has yet to win. However, fitting it into his calendar would pose a significant challenge: it ends one day before Paris-Roubaix, making it extremely difficult to compete in both races in the right condition.
His Classics programme will therefore need to strike a balance between the chance to add to his palmarès and the need to arrive at Roubaix in the best possible shape.
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A season finale featuring three major challenges
The second half of 2027 could take shape more clearly if the combination Pogacar has discussed publicly is confirmed. In July, he would target a sixth Tour de France victory, adding to his record in the most prestigious race on the calendar.
The World Championships would follow in Haute-Savoie, in the French Alps, as part of the 2027 Super World Championships. The Slovenian would have the chance to reclaim the rainbow jersey, one of the major goals that slipped away after he abandoned this year’s Vuelta.
September would bring a return to the Spanish Grand Tour. Pogacar has said he wants to complete his experience of all three Grand Tours, and the Vuelta looks the most likely option for 2027. The final decision, however, still needs to appear in UAE’s definitive race programme.
His campaign could once again end at Il Lombardia, one of the Monuments where the Slovenian has built a significant part of his palmarès. However, this race and the other events still awaiting confirmation will depend on the plan agreed in Abu Dhabi.
This week’s meeting will turn Pogacar’s ambitions into a concrete roadmap. The Tour, the World Championships and the Vuelta are among the major goals he has identified, while Paris-Roubaix remains his biggest unresolved challenge in the Classics. The final programme will determine how he distributes his efforts as he seeks to take on all these challenges in a single season.
Jorge BorregueroWriter
Jorge Borreguero is a journalist with a degree from the Complutense University of Madrid and has been a writer for Cyclinguptodate and Ciclismoaldia since early 2023. In this role, he has played a key part in the evolution of the website, particularly as a specialist covering Movistar Team. He regularly writes race reports, analytical pieces, and in-depth features about the team, and has conducted exclusive interviews and attended multiple team presentations, providing readers with firsthand insights into one of the leading professional cycling squads.
Throughout his career, Jorge has maintained a strong focus on sports journalism, gaining experience across a variety of disciplines, including basketball and football. However, his current work is almost entirely dedicated to cycling, contributing extensively to Ciclismoaldia and its sister website Cyclinguptodate. For these platforms, he combines thorough research with detailed reporting to deliver high-quality content, ranging from race previews and results to expert analysis of teams and riders.
Jorge’s reporting is marked by accuracy, depth, and a commitment to providing readers with reliable and authoritative information. His direct engagement with teams, athletes, and events ensures that his coverage reflects firsthand knowledge and professional insight. Through his work, he has established himself as a trusted voice in professional cycling journalism, bridging the gap between the sport and its global audience while maintaining rigorous editorial standards.
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- More pile-on from the usual suspects. Cycling is too hard.Occam28-10-2026
- You're saying: "(pogi best ever...and del toro..) ... Good years ahead, cycling is great now." I think the same. Pogi is most likely the greatest cyclist of all time, but we have many many fools, also on this site, saying that Pogi is boring, he's making cycling "boring"??? I can't believe what's comming out of their deteriorating bad breath mouths. So I guess Merckx, Hinault, Indurain, Fasto Coppi and Anquetil were also boring at their time!?!? PS: Many cycling fans that think that way, have to get a brain scan. Medication nowadays is quite advanced.PogiSloFans28-10-2026
- That's also true.PogiSloFans28-10-2026
- Oh come on .every country has road furniture .look at Holland .nightmare. every stage of the TDF has danger that is why Vin crashed out.If you look at the race with a health and safety outlook for everything why bother racing.cav crashed out in a sprint finish on wide open road so the argument holds little water.paultryan200228-10-2026
- This will be Remco's only chance that I see to win a tour. If he doesn't do it in 2027 he never will based on his age and upcoming new talent in the pro ranks. But he's not going to do it, Seixas is going to leapfrog him in 2027, unless he crashes out or is sick.awp28-10-2026
- If Seixas has the same development he did from the first of 2026 until the end of it, he is one of the Tour favorites in 2027. I think Tadej is obviously the guy to beat but Seixas should slot right in there with him.awp28-10-2026
- People forget Jonas can TT but it's been a few years since he's had a good result. I feel like he is going to come back with some anger this year. But he may retire, who knows.awp28-10-2026
- They had no chance anyway until Jonas crashed out, he was looking better and better.awp28-10-2026
- I don't think Lipowitz will be in front of Jonas, but time will tell.awp28-10-2026
- You're forgetting something very important, Jonas won the Giro before going to the Tour and his legs and body felt it. He wanted to prove that he can do the something Pogi did in 2024 but it didn't work out for him. There is a valid reason why only eight male cyclists in history have won both the Giro and the Tour in the same calendar year. The last one was Pogi. To sum it all up, if Jonas hadn't have done the Giro, I think Remco, Siexas and the rest would have had no chance to be second.PogiSloFans28-10-2026
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