The world of professional cycling is buzzing with anticipation—imagine the thrill of teams battling it out on the global stage, but what if some riders' futures hang by a thread? The recent announcement of UCI WorldTour licenses for the 2026-2028 seasons has turned heads, especially with Picnic-PostNL's men's and women's teams getting only a one-year reprieve. Let's dive into the details and uncover what's really going on in this high-stakes game.
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has just unveiled the complete lineup of allocations for the WorldTour licenses spanning 2026 through 2028. For those new to the sport, the WorldTour is like the premier league of cycling—it's the top tier where the best teams compete in the most prestigious races worldwide, offering riders the chance to chase glory in events like the Tour de France. This time, the UCI has allocated a total of 14 UCI Women's WorldTour licenses and 18 UCI WorldTour licenses for men, covering the next three seasons. They've also sorted out the registrations for the second division, known as the ProTeam leagues, which are stepping stones for teams aiming to climb higher.
And this is the part most people miss—it's the first occasion that licenses for both men's and women's top divisions have been handed out together for a consistent three-year stretch. This uniformity could bring more stability to the sport, allowing teams to plan long-term strategies without the annual scramble. But here's where it gets controversial: Picnic-PostNL (check out their full profile at https://www.cyclingnews.com/road/teams/uci-worldtour/2025/picnic-postnl/) has been hit with a one-year license for both their men's and women's squads. The UCI's Licence Commission decided to cap it at just one year and imposed special financial conditions that must be satisfied to extend it into 2027 and 2028. Intriguingly, the exact nature of these criteria hasn't been disclosed, and the reasoning behind the shortened duration remains unclear. From what Cyclingnews has gathered, the team is still ironing out details with a major sponsor, and a breakthrough might be just around the corner.
While the exclusions of Arkéa-B&B Hotels (https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/i-dont-have-anything-arkea-b-and-b-hotels-run-out-of-road-as-bid-to-continue-into-2026-collapses/) and Ceratizit (https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/end-of-the-road-comes-in-september-for-ceratizit-pro-cycling-after-11-seasons/) were somewhat expected since both wrapped up operations in 2025, the absence of Roland from both the WorldTour and ProTeam rosters raised eyebrows. Cyclingnews reached out to Roland for clarification, but they declined to comment at this time. Back in October, reports suggested the team hadn't submitted all the necessary paperwork for their application to the elite leagues. Does this mean Roland simply dropped the ball, or is there a deeper story of financial woes or strategic shifts? It's fuel for debate among fans.
Shifting gears to the men's WorldTour, some notable changes stand out. The NSN Cycling Team (https://www.cyclingnews.com/pro-cycling/teams-riders/israel-premier-tech-rebrand-as-nsn-cycling-team-for-2026-season-will-race-under-swiss-licence/), previously known as Israel-Premier Tech, has secured a spot by switching its registration from Israel to Switzerland. Meanwhile, after intense talks, the merger between Intermarché (once Intermarché-Wanty) and the veteran Belgian team Lotto has been greenlit, rebranding as Lotto Intermarché. Imagine the excitement of combining rosters and resources—this could create a powerhouse, but it might also spark envy from rival teams wondering if mergers are the new secret to success.
To wrap up the allocations, the UCI's press release confirms 14 UCI Women's WorldTeams, 18 UCI WorldTeams, 16 UCI ProTeams, and seven UCI Women’s ProTeams gearing up for 2026. For a quick visual, here's the lineup:
UCI Women's WorldTeams
- AG INSURANCE – SOUDAL TEAM (AGS – BEL)
- CANYON-SRAM ZONDACRYPTO (CSZ – GER)
- EF EDUCATION – OATLY (EFO - USA)
- FDJ UNITED – SUEZ (TFS – FRA)
- FENIX – PREMIER TECH (FPT – BEL)
- HUMAN POWERED HEALTH (HPH – USA)
- LIDL – TREK (LTK – GER)
- LIV – ALULA – JAYCO (LIV – AUS)
- MOVISTAR TEAM (MOV – ESP)
- TEAM PICNIC POSTNL (TPP – NED)
- TEAM SD WORX – PROTIME (SDW – NED)
- TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE (TVL – NED)
- UAE TEAM ADQ (UAD – UAE)
- UNO-X MOBILITY (UXM – NOR).
UCI Men's WorldTeams
- ALPECIN – PREMIER TECH (APC – BEL)
- BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS (TBV – BRN)
- DECATHLON CMA CGM TEAM (DCT – FRA)
- EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST (EFE – USA)
- GROUPAMA – FDJ UNITED (GFC – FRA)
- INEOS GRENADIERS (IGD – GBR)
- LIDL – TREK (LTK – GER)
- LOTTO INTERMARCHÉ (LOI – BEL)
- MOVISTAR TEAM (MOV – ESP)
- NSN CYCLING TEAM (NSN – SUI)
- RED BULL – BORA – HANSGROHE (RBH – GER)
- SOUDAL QUICK-STEP (SOQ – BEL)
- TEAM JAYCO ALULA (JAY – AUS)
- TEAM PICNIC POSTNL (TPP – NED)
- TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE (TVL – NED)
- UAE TEAM EMIRATES XRG (UAD – UAE)
- UNO-X MOBILITY (UXM – NOR)
- XDS ASTANA TEAM (XAT – KAZ).
UCI Men's ProTeams
- BARDIANI CSF (BCS – ITA)
- BURGOS – BURPELLET – BH (BBH – ESP)
- CAJA RURAL – SEGUROS RGA (CJR – ESP)
- COFIDIS (COF – FRA)
- EQUIPO KERN PHARMA (EKP – ESP)
- EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI (EUS – ESP)
- MBH BANK CSB TELECOM FORT (MBH – HUN)
- MODERN ADVENTURE PRO CYCLING (MAP – USA)
- PINARELLO – Q36.5 PRO CYCLING TEAM (Q36 – SUI)
- TEAM FLANDERS – BALOISE (TFB – BEL)
- TEAM NOVO NORDISK (TNN – USA)
- TEAM POLTI VISITMALTA (PTV – ITA)
- TOSCANA NIPPO RALI (TFT – ITA)
- TOTALENERGIES (TEN – FRA)
- TUDOR PRO CYCLING TEAM (TUD – SUI)
- UNIBET ROSE ROCKETS (RKT – FRA).
UCI Women's ProTeams
- COFIDIS WOMEN TEAM (CWT – FRA)
- LABORAL KUTXA – FUNDACION EUSKADI (LKF – ESP)
- LOTTO LADIES (LOL – BEL)
- MA PETITE ENTREPRISE (MPE – FRA)
- MAYENNE MONBANA MY PIE (MMM – FRA)
- ST MICHEL – PREFERENCE HOME – AUBER93 (AUB – FRA)
- VOLKERWESSELS CYCLING TEAM (VCT – NED).
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What do you think about these license decisions? Is the UCI being too harsh on teams like Picnic-PostNL, or is it fair to enforce strict financial rules to keep the sport competitive? And could mergers like Lotto Intermarché change the landscape of cycling forever, or do they just create unfair advantages? Share your thoughts in the comments—do you agree with the exclusions, or is there a counterpoint we haven't considered? Let's discuss!
Alasdair Fotheringham has been passionately covering the cycling scene since 1991. He's reported on every Tour de France except one since 1992, and his adventures have taken him to diverse events from the 2008 Olympics to the now-discontinued Subida a Urkiola hill climb in Spain. Beyond Cyclingnews, his work has appeared in outlets like The Independent, The Guardian, ProCycling, The Express, and Reuters.
