Visma continue building for the future! 19-year-old Belgian prospect to become 15th rider to step up from Dev Team to World Tour

Team Visma | Lease a Bike have locked in the next product of their development system, confirming that Matisse Van Kerckhove will join the WorldTeam from the 2027 season. The 19-year-old Belgian has signed a two-year contract and becomes the fifteenth rider to make the move directly from the Development Team into the senior squad.

For Visma, it is another clear signal that the long-term talent pathway is not just a slogan but a pipeline that continues to deliver riders ready for the highest level. For Van Kerckhove, it marks the latest step in a rise that has happened far faster than most young riders ever manage.

When Van Kerckhove joined the Development Team in 2025, he had only two years of experience as a road rider. Despite that, he immediately made his mark in the race against the clock, finishing second in the prologues of both the Giro Next Gen and the Istrian Spring Trophy, as well as taking second at the European and Belgian time trial championships.

Visma’s Head of Development Robbert de Groot said the speed of that transition stood out more than anything else. “Above all, he showed that he has handled the transition from juniors to U23s very well. Despite his limited experience as a road rider, he has made major progress in a very short period of time. Physically, but also in terms of personal and tactical development. He adapts easily to a higher level.”

That adaptability has been a constant theme in how the team talks about Van Kerckhove. Rather than being shaped into one narrow role, he has been tested across very different types of racing.

While his early results pointed clearly towards time trials, Van Kerckhove has also shown he can survive and compete in tough one-day and stage races. Sixth at La Fleche Ardennaise, fifth at the Giro del Belvedere, and tenth at Gent Wevelgem U23 underlined that he is not limited to flat efforts against the clock.

He has also already tasted racing alongside the WorldTeam in events such as the Deutschland Tour and the Tour de Slovaquie, an important part of Visma’s method of gradually exposing young riders to higher levels.

De Groot made it clear that, from the team’s perspective, the promotion was more a matter of timing than debate. “That he will make the definitive step up to the WorldTeam in 2027 was, in fact, inevitable. His time trials and the way he has performed across races at all levels show that he needs to move up in order to continue developing.”

Van Kerckhove will not jump straight into a full WorldTour calendar. In the coming season, he will still target several U23 goals, while also continuing to race regularly with the WorldTeam to build experience.

The rider himself framed the move less as an endpoint and more as the start of a much longer process. “I am extremely motivated and proud to make the step from the Development Team to the WorldTeam. The Matisse of five years ago would never have imagined standing here today, so I can only be proud of myself. I really look forward to testing myself at the highest level and continuing to grow.”

Asked about the type of rider he wants to become, Van Kerckhove did not limit himself to one discipline. “I want to develop into a strong classics rider who can also play an important role in time trials. Someone who can be valuable to the team in tough races and time trials, and who learns step by step how to perform consistently at WorldTour level. Team Visma | Lease a Bike is the ideal environment for me to do that. Over the past year, I’ve experienced how strong the focus is on preparation and development. That way of working suits me perfectly.”

For Visma, that mix of ambition and patience is exactly what they look for. The system is built around long-term progression, not fast promotions for the sake of headlines.

By 2027, Van Kerckhove will no longer be a prospect but a WorldTeam rider. For now, he sits in the space between those two labels, learning, racing and being shaped as the next name to emerge from one of the most productive development structures in the sport.