"The collaboration were not what we had in mind" - Dstny will step away as sponsor of Lotto Dstny at the end of 2024 season
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Belgian telecom company Dstny no longer wants to be associated with the Lotto cycling team and is stopping as a sponsor. At the beginning of 2025, Dstny will disappear as a name on the cycling jerseys. An important cause: the style and personality of Lottery CEO Jannie Haek, according to the company that offers cloud-based business communication.
Daan De Wever, CEO of the tech scale-up, sees the collaboration as 'no longer in line with the values and standards of his company'. "The relationship with the Lottery was not going well right from the start," De Wever tells De Tijd. "We quickly realised that we were in a structure where the Lottery did not want to share power. In every decision - both sporting and policy - they wanted to have the last word. The culture, the style and the collaboration were not what we had in mind."
Dstny has been a co-sponsor of the Lotto cycling team since the end of February 2022, for between 5 and 7 million euros in sponsorship money per year. De Wever emphasizes that the relationship with the cycling team itself has always been positive. "Our focus on new young talent, through the Lotto Dstny Development Team, is especially close to my heart."
The sour relationship between Dstny and the National Lottery was not the only reason why the sponsorship contract became impossible for the telecom company. Commercial interests also played a role. "With a team that focuses on the Belgian market, we have made the most of it," says De Wever. "With Dstny, we want to generate much more international visibility. That is currently not possible with the Lotto team."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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