Team Sky is looking for new sponsors, with its current backers - and suppliers of its huge budget - ceasing their support at the end of 2019.
Currently getting prepared for another season on the road, Team Sky is now looking for new sponsors.
Sky, which was recently taken over by Concast, and 21st Century Fox have both confirmed they will end their backing of the team at the end of 2019.
The news comes at a time when many cycling teams have folded and others have merged amid difficulties in attracting sponsors into the sport.
And with Team Sky having had the biggest budget by far in pro cycling, it will very likely prove hard to find a replacement with pockets as deep as Sky.
At present there is one Irish rider in the team roster, Eddie Dunbar. Philip Deignan had been a Team Sky rider for five years but recently announced his retirement.
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Dunbar raced for Team Sky at the end of the 2018 season after his former squad Aqua Blue Sport folded in August.
And while Dunbar now finds himself in another uncertain position, the team has a year to line up another sponsor.
It means next season is safe, with the money in place to continue as the hunt for new backers is carried out.
“We came into cycling with the aim of using elite success to inspire greater participation at all levels,” said Jeremy Darroch, Sky Group's chief executive.
“After more than a decade of involvement, I couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve achieved with Team Sky and our long-standing partners at British Cycling.
“But the end of 2019 is the right time for us to move on as we open a new chapter in Sky’s story and turn our focus to different initiatives including our Sky Ocean Rescue campaign.
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“I’d like to pay a special tribute to Dave Brailsford and the immensely talented team of riders and staff he has assembled at Team Sky.
“What they have achieved together would have been beyond the dreams of many just a few years ago.
“We thank you for joining with us on this journey and look forward to enjoying our last season of racing together.”
Climbing specialist Eddie Dunbar is the only Irish rider in the Team Sky line-up at present.
Team Sky’s Dave Brailsford said the team was not finished just because its sponsors since inception were ceasing its backing.
"The vision for Team Sky began with the ambition to build a clean, winning team around a core of British riders and staff," he said.
"The team’s success has been the result of the talent, dedication and hard work of a remarkable group of people who have constantly challenged themselves to scale new heights of performance.
"None of this would have been possible without Sky. We are proud of the part we have played in Britain’s transformation into a cycling nation over the last decade.
"While Sky will be moving on at the end of next year, the Team is open minded about the future and the potential of working with a new partner, should the right opportunity present itself.
"For now, I would like to thank all Team Sky riders and staff, past and present - and above all the fans who have supported us on this adventure.
"We aren’t finished yet by any means. There is another exciting year of racing ahead of us and we will be doing everything we can to deliver more Team Sky success in 2019."
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