All change - Soudal and AG Insurance swap Specialized for Merida, Continental, Sidi and more for 2027

Soudal and AG Insurance have thanked Specialized for their support and sponsorship and welcomed Merida, Continental, Sidi, Lazer, Prologo as new technical sponsors for 2027.

The men's Soudal Quick-Step team secured 800 victories during 18 seasons using Specialized bikes, with Tim Merlier taking a final win and patting his Specialized bike in gratitude at the Eneco Tour.

Specialized's time with Soudal included some of the biggest moments in the career's of Paolo Berttini, Tom Boonen, Tony Martin, Philip Gilbert, Julian Alaphilippe, Mark Cavendish asnd Remco Evenepoel. Recent success has come thanks to Paul Magnier, Tim Merlier and Kimberley Le Court.

Specialized will sponsor Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe alongside a life-time deal with Remco Evenepoel, plus FDJ-Suez and SD Worx-Protime in 2027, and their gravel team led by Keegan Swenson and Sofía Gómez Villafañe. 

Soudal and AG Insurance will switch to Merida bikes, which owns 35% of Specialized, where founder Mike Synard has returned as CEO. The Belgian men's team will be known as Soudal Safety Jogger in 2027, with the women's team as AG Insurance Soudal.

Specialized provided far more than frames as part of their long-standing agreements, forcing the Belgian teams to source a swath of new technical sponsors, including key components such as shoes, rim, tyres and helmets. Shimano stays on board as lead component sponsor and provides the wheels, with Castelli again providing race clothing.

Head of Technical & Development Nicolas Coosemans and Head Coach Koen Pelgrim led the teams' technical assessment of the new sponsors.

"We have been working on this project for more than one year, because decisions around technical partners have a direct impact on the performance of our riders," team manager Jurgen Foré said. 

"We wanted to look at every element of our equipment package and understand where we could make improvements, while also building on the strong relationships that we already have.

“What excites me most is not simply the individual products that our riders will use, but the expertise that each of these companies brings to our teams. We want our technical partners to work closely with our riders and performance staff, sharing knowledge, data and ideas so that we can continue to develop together."

Merida will return to WorldTour racing after ending their ties with Bahrain Victorious and have agreed a four-year deal with Soudal and AG Insurance. 

Leaks have already shown possible black and dark blue bike colours for 2027. The bikes will be fitted with Shimano Dura-Ace components and wheels, Continental tyres and Prologo saddles, replacing Specialized products. 

Riders, team mechanics and biomechanics face a winter of change and adoption to the new brands and their products. The team will first build winter training bikes and then begin to prepare hundreds of race bikes for the 2027 season.