EF Education-EasyPost turns the page with ASSOS after the Rapha years

EF Education–EasyPost has confirmed ASSOS in a press release as its new official apparel partner, with the agreement set to begin in 2026. The Swiss performance brand will support both the men’s and women’s programmes.

Jonathan Vaughters, EF Pro Cycling Founder and CEO, stated the following on the new partnership: "ASSOS has a long history of setting the standard for innovation in cycling. They’ve been pushing boundaries since before many of our riders were born. My first pair of bibs were ASSOS, and they were a revelation. Decades later, they’re still leading the way, producing the most technically advanced clothing in the peloton, and our riders can feel that every time they suit up. This partnership is rooted in creating the fastest and best-looking kit in cycling. We’re excited to keep pushing boundaries together.”

It also closes a distinctive chapter. The Rapha era, which began in 2019, coincided with EF’s transformation into a cultural outlier in the peloton. Pink kits, bold collaborations and a willingness to play with fashion and identity set the team apart. But as Jonathan Vaughters explained on the Domestique Hotseat, the split was not about abandoning that vision.

“We’ve had a lot of fun with Rapha over the years,” Vaughters said. “They initiated a lot of new ideas early on, especially around kit design and collaborations. For the most part, the design work has been really good.”

What has changed, he explained, is Rapha’s own position as a company. “Rapha is a business that, by their publicly released financials, has struggled for a number of years,” Vaughters said. “They’re resetting as a company, trying to get back to basics and rebuild towards profitability.”

For a brand focused on stabilisation, that level of engagement can become a burden. “If you’re just trying to get your footing again financially, having someone like me calling and saying ‘we need a faster skinsuit’ is probably pretty annoying,” Vaughters admitted. “So for them, a clean reset made sense.”

The arrival of ASSOS signals a recalibration rather than a reinvention. Vaughters was clear that he did not want the new partner to mimic Rapha’s cultural approach. “I told them not to try to be the next Rapha,” he said. “That’s not going to work.”

Instead, ASSOS is being positioned as part of a broader performance-driven shift. “It's not always about being the goofiest,” Vaughters said. “Sometimes it's just about being the best.”

That philosophy aligns with where EF believes it is heading. After pandemic-era budget constraints limited investment in performance infrastructure, the team now has more flexibility to rebuild. “We’re taking performance much more seriously,” Vaughters said. “We want to be known not just as a team with personality, but as a team that wins big races.”

For fans, the end of the Rapha partnership will feel like the close of a distinctive cultural period. But from EF’s perspective, the timing feels deliberate. “After I got over my initial sadness,” Vaughters said, “I realised this was a chance to reposition the team in a way we were already moving towards.”

The pink may remain, but the story it tells is changing.