Our sale has been extended! ✌️ Shop your favourite Team Jumbo-Visma items such as cycling wear, casual clothing and other items now.
"We didn’t want one team left in limbo" - Richard Plugge on Jumbo-Visma's failed merger with Soudal - Quick-Step
CyclingThursday, 19 October 2023 at 16:00
Although much discussed, the proposed merger between Jumbo-Visma and Soudal - Quick-Step did not materialise, with the Dutch-based team instead finding new sponsorship elsewhere and becoming Visma - Lease a Bike for 2024.
Reflected on a crazy few weeks of rumour, uncertainty and surprise, Jumbo-Visma boss Richard Plugge went into detail about just why the merging of two of cycling's most successful teams didn't take place. “That discussion didn’t work out for a number of reasons,” Plugge tells The Outer Line. “One of the reasons was that after our discussions with the UCI, we found that there wasn’t a good solution for both teams; we didn’t want one team left in limbo.”
The news of supermarket chain Jumbo pulling back their sponsorship wasn't a great surprise to Plugge and although it took some time to find a replacement deal that was right, he never worried. "We’ve known for quite a while that Jumbo would be scaling back after 2024, and fortunately we’ve had the time and opportunity to talk with various parties about coming in to replace them," he explains.
The likes of business giants, Amazon and Apple were both linked but eventually, Lease a Bike stepped in to fill the hole. The company were already seen on Jumbo-Visma jersey's but will now be promoted to title sponsor going into 2024.
claps 1visitors 1548
Just in
Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter today!
Nov 05, 13:04
0
Five world tour debutants to watch next season
Dec 23, 10:00
0
Popular news
Latest comments
- Most of these have nothing to do with rider safety or are completely unachievablevappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Depends on how fast the Cipressa would be beforehand and in what condition Philipsen would bevappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Some things sound crazy until they aren't, what if he's actually right? 🤷vappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Why make a comment to state the obvious? Of course MvdP is much better at CX than Pogacar, does anyone doubt that But that wasn't his pointvappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- If you look at road alone obvi Pogacar is the better rider. But maybe MVDP is the better overall rider since he can win in three plus disciplines?mobk23-12-2024
- Correction on 2021 Olympics. It was mainly the Dutch ladies who didn’t know who was leading the race. Other teams like the Germans and Italians knew that Kiesenhofer was out front.mobk23-12-2024
- A champion turning into a sore loser. Or is he on coke again?
UltimateOpportunist23-12-2024 - If you look at the major races they’ve both been in, van der Poel had the early edge as lately Pogacar has had the advantage. It’s all on procyclingstats.RidesHills23-12-2024
- I wouldn’t assume Tadej can’t win at cross. He did a cross race, not a World Cup, a few years ago and crushed the field. It was a minor race. But he can win anywhere.mij23-12-2024
- I wonder what would happen if Pogacar attacked on the Cipressa instead of the Poggio in San Remo? Would MvdPoel still be able to follow?Ride197423-12-2024