Will Team Budgets In Cycling Soon Be Capped?

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) recently approved the principle of a budget cap for WorldTour teams, aimed at preserving sporting fairness by limiting the financial disparities between them.

This measure, which is distinct from a simple salary cap, encompasses all team expenses and could be implemented as early as 2026¹

According to Christian Prudhomme, the boss of the Tour de France, "with capital coming in from Arab countries in particular, the match is a little unbalanced"²

Some teams are run by States (UAE Team Emirates, Bahrain-Victorious or Astana Qazaqstan, for example) with considerable resources, which enables them to create teams made up of numerous stars of the discipline, thus annihilating the competing teams who cannot afford so many favourites.