Ineos Grenadiers looks set for a change of identity, with growing Danish and French influence, from the next few months (Photo: Chris Auld)
Ineos Grenadiers has reportedly secured a new title sponsor in the shape of a Danish technology company that would injected €100 million into the British World Tour team over the next five years.
British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe - whose Ineos chemicals company and Ineos Grenadiers vehicles firm have sponsored the team for years - would still own the team. But the new Danish software backer, and Total Energies, would be its sponsors, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
And that would result in a name change and completely new identity, resulting in non-British sponsors for the team for the first time since its inception in 2010, as Sky Pro Cycling.
Sky, the British broadcasting company, sponsored the team from 2010 to 2018, with Ineos taking over as backers, and team owners, at that point. Ineos Grenadiers, a sports utility vehicle, became the sponsor from the following year.
Advertisement
Related News
TotalEnergies, a French gas and oil company, agreed a jersey deal with the team last year, around the same time it became the energy partner of the men's and women's Tour de France.
While TotalEnergies currently backs the ProConti team that races under its name, that deal is coming to an end. Its relationship with Ineos Grenadiers is to set to advance to a reported €20 million per year.
Furthermore, the new deal with the Danish software company may be unveiled as early as the Tour de France in July, which would bring about a really significant change for the team. It will result in growing influence over the team from Denmark and France.
This time last year, Ineos Grenadiers appointed an agency, Sportfive, to manage the search for a team title sponsor. Team boss, Dave Brailsford, believes the team needs at least €50 million to complete with its bigger and better rivals, including UAE Team Emirates XRG and Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe.
The British team has also been overtaken in recent years by Visma-Lease a Bike, though it has suffered its own financial squeeze of late and is looking for a new backer,
Visma, a software company from Norway, is set to remain on, though it is not keen to continually increase its funding. That has created the need for a new backer, as team budgets come under pressure. The Dutch team is reportedly trying to come up with a new deal with €30 million annually.
