Cycling

Red Bull entry at Bora becomes visible in July!

This is what the jerseys of the new Red Bull team could look like ...

(Bild: ZVG)

The takeover of the German cycling team Bora-hansgrohe by the Austrian group Red Bull is perfect! The team announced this on Thursday, just a few days before the start of the Giro d'Italia. However, the new owner will not be visible until the Tour de France in July. The team will then be officially registered with the UCI under the name Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe and will continue to ride under a German license. 

The previous team boss Ralph Denk signed a multi-year contract as CEO and will remain in his role. "The aim is to become the benchmark in sporting and economic terms," said Denk. Thanks to the additional Red Bull millions, the team will become one of the top teams financially. The budget of 25 million euros to date will increase to a rumored 45 million euros per year. This will put them in a similar position to the UAE team with top star Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian will start the Giro on Saturday as the big favorite.

Up to 30 percent of the new money for the structure
The big visual change will take place at the start of the Tour. The design of the jerseys will change, as will the bikes and the fleet. With the Slovenian Primoz Roglic, the aim is to fight for overall victory in the most important race in the world. Up to 30 percent of the new money is to be invested in the structure.

This includes the expansion of scouting to a worldwide network. There will also be a dedicated U23 team, which is set to start on January 1, 2025. The budget will also be used to fill the squad positions 20 to 30 better than before and to strengthen the long-neglected classics group.

Of the current three Austrian Bora riders Marco Haller, Patrick Gamper and Alexander Hajek, only the latter currently has a contract beyond 2024. Until now, Red Bull has only sponsored individual athletes in cycling, such as the Belgian Wout van Aert or Olympic mountain bike champion Thomas Pidcock from Great Britain. Now, as in Formula 1 and soccer (Salzburg, Leipzig, New York, Bragantino), the Group has its own team.