Vacansoleil, traditional sponsor of Jumbo-Visma files for bankruptcy; consequences are still uncertain

The travel company Vacansoleil, which was a major sponsor of cycling for many years, has been declared bankrupt by the District Court of East Brabant. The administrator of the bankruptcy proceedings, Lodewijk Hox, said as much on Thursday. It is not yet known what the consequences will be for Jumbo-Visma, among others.

Vacansoleil is still in cycling as a sponsor of Jumbo-Visma. The company's logo appears on the side of the women's teams' equipment and on their kit.

In the past, Vacansoleil was for many years the main sponsor of a Dutch cycling team, for which Johnny Hoogerland and Wout Poels, among other names, competed. In 2009 and 2010 the team was renamed Vacansoleil, then from 2011 to 2013 the team was known as Vacansoleil-DCM.

Vacansoleil was in serious trouble because the company had accumulated a large debt burden in the past. After the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, camping sales fell and the company had to attract additional financing. Now that interest rates have risen dramatically, this huge debt has become unsustainable. High inflation has also caused many difficulties for Vacansoleil, which has led to this tough decision.