'We knew it was coming': Behind the slow demise of Arkéa-B&B Hotels

Manager Emmanuel Hubert faced an uphill task when both Arkéa and B&B Hotels signalled their intention to withdraw their backing at the end of the year. Even when Kévin Vauquelin’s golden summer briefly sparked hopes of a late reprieve of the kind earned by Jean-René Bernaudeau’s Europcar in 2010, there was always an air of realism around the situation within the team.

“We already knew the situation was complicated for several months, and Manu Hubert was searching for backers for the team for more than a year,” directeur sportif Sébastien Hinault said on Wednesday.

“We were hoping for a reaction from a sponsor who was maybe hesitating, but you can see that the economic context isn’t easy, and we couldn’t find a sponsor to go again next year.”

Hinault was speaking on the main strip in Jingxi on Wednesday morning, where the travelling circus of the WorldTour was pitching its big top ahead of stage 3 of the Tour of Guangxi. For some riders and staff at Arkéa-B&B Hotels, this week in China could be their final taste of the Big Show. It’s a cruel game, cycling.

“We knew before we came here,” Hinault said. “Manu had told us that October 1 was the deadline, so we knew for some time that it was going to be complicated. All the possible lines closed off one by one, and unfortunately, the team has to stop.”

As Hinault spoke, his riders began to arrive one by one from the team hotel around the block, ready to report for duty for their final days in Arkéa colours. Some of the squad will compete again at this level next year. Vauqelin has signed for Ineos, and Luca Mozzato is destined for Tudor in 2026, for instance, while Ewen Costiou has been heavily linked with a move to Groupama-FDJ. But for others, including Michel Ries, the outlook is rather less clear.

“For me personally, I don’t know what my future will look like in cycling,” Ries admitted in Jingxi. “I have nothing done yet for next year, so it’s also special because you don’t know what you will be doing in the next month. For now, I’m still waiting, and it can be anything, maybe it could be my last cycling race also. The future is still open, so that’s also special for the race here.”

Cycling history is liberally sprinkled with tales of teams abruptly disbanding. Indeed, B&B Hotels’ previous withdrawal from sponsorship led to the folding of another French squad in 2022, though the circumstances were rather different, as manager Jerome Pineau only informed his riders of the team’s demise in December, by which point he had even agreed a deal in principle to sign Mark Cavendish and Stevie Williams.

At Arkéa, by contrast, staff and riders, including those under contract, were given the freedom to negotiate with other teams since April. But it was still always clear that when the music finally stopped, many would find themselves without a place to stop.

“Manu didn’t tell us something that was not true, so we have to really respect that he was not telling us ‘We'll find something’ and then in the end, we end up with nothing,” Ries said. “He was honest with us all the time.”

The squad had grown considerably since starting life as Bretagne-Jean Floch back in 2005, gradually progressing through the ranks to reach the WorldTour in 2023. In the intervening period, women’s and development teams were added to the structure, which adds to the list of those seeking employment elsewhere as the shutters come down.

“There are 150 people involved between the WorldTour, Continental and Women’s teams and the staff,” Hinault said. “It’s going to be difficult for a lot of people, there aren’t a lot of spaces on other teams. It’s sad, but it’s unfortunately the nature of life in this sport – you’re reliant on sponsors.” 

In Hinault’s view, it’s also something of a paradox. While interest from television audiences and roadside fans serves to stoke interest among prospective sponsors, the spiralling costs of maintaining a competitive WorldTour team dissuade most from following through on the idea. 

Arkéa-B&B Hotels' estimated 2025 budget of €17 million was most likely the lowest in the WorldTour, and barely a quarter of top-ranked UAE Team Emirates-XRG’s reported €60 million.

“Budgets are getting bigger and bigger in cycling, which is good or bad, depending on your situation, because it maybe makes some sponsors hesitate about coming into the sport,” Hinault said. “Yet the sport is becoming more and more popular too, so it’s a bit paradoxical.

“It’s worrying, too, when you see that this has happened despite our very good results. Even though our budget wasn’t among the biggest in the WorldTour, we got some very interesting results, but unfortunately that wasn’t enough to interest a sponsor.”

The Arkéa riders and staff without a contract for 2026 know they are running out of road to find something elsewhere. Ries was among the early escapees on stage 3 in Guangxi, while his teammate Simon Guglielmi, also without a confirmed deal for 2026, would take possession of the king of the mountains jersey after his day in the break. 

“It says a lot about the team that everybody still does what they have to do,” Ries said. “We are really enjoying still our time.”

Until Sunday, at least, they will keep raging against the dying of the light. What else can they do?