UCI debates November start date for rider contracts
The UCI are considering shifting the start date of rider contracts, which would mark the end of new signings wearing old team kit until the start of the new calendar year.
Remco Evenepoel is well underway with his preparations ahead of his debut season with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. The Olympic champion has been spotted on multiple occasions training with his new teammates, but on all occasions, Evenepoel has still been sporting the kit of Soudal-QuickStep, the team with whom he turned professional in 2019 and has won 67 times since.
This is the same for all riders who have signed for new teams ahead of the 2026 season, and it's something that is just the norm in cycling, yet in most other sports, this would feel bizarre.
If you’ve ever wondered why riders still wear their old team kit when linking up with their new teams until the start of the new year, it’s because under current UCI rules, contracts begin on January 1.
However, this is something that could be about to change in the near future because, at the request of the teams, this topic has been put on the UCI’s agenda with a petition to change the contract terms to begin on November 1.
Current president of the AIGCP, the International Association of Professional Cycling Teams, Richard Plugge, who is also CEO of Visma | Lease a Bike, is among those who support the change.
Peter Van den Abeele, Director of Sport at the UCI, confirmed to Knack that the topic had been “briefly discussed” during the last meeting of the UCI professional cycling council.
"We are working on it with the AIGCP and the CPA, the riders' union. The regulation change will definitely be implemented, with contracts starting on November 1 instead of January 1. The starting year is still to be determined in consultation with all stakeholders.”
