Online holiday tour operator Sunweb has renewed its title sponsorship of UCI WorldTour cycling outfit Team Sunweb for an “indefinite amount of time”.
Sunweb’s partnership with the team had been due to expire after the 2019 season but the new agreement, which the outfit claims is unique for cycling, secures Team Sunweb’s long-term future.
Team Sunweb said the new partnership will focus on the development of the team and the sport of cycling as a whole. Since partnering with the team ahead of the 2017 season, Sunweb has supported development and anti-doping programs.
From 2019, the ‘Keep Challenging Center – Home of Team Sunweb’ initiative will launch in Germany and the Netherlands, while a new office and logistical headquarters are set to open in the Dutch city of Deventer this year.
Team Sunweb said that if the two parties ever decide to end their relationship in the future, the agreement would still run for nearly three years; two complete years on top of the full remainder of the year of which it was decided to discontinue the partnership.
Tim Van den Bergh, Sunweb’s chief commercial officer, said: “We’re extremely pleased with the extension of our partnership, which contributes hugely to our business goal of significant international growth in summer and winter holidays. Rather than being a temporary sponsor, Sunweb aims to build a strong legacy with the team and also as an investor in the sport, taking responsibility in the fields of youth development and anti-doping. The new agreement should not only be good for Sunweb and for the team, it should also be good for the sport of cycling and its future.”
Team Sunweb chief executive Iwan Spekenbrink added: “With this stability, our organisational focus can shift to many, many years into the future. It offers us the opportunity to not only think long-term but also to actually shape our future, ultimately becoming a durable elite cycling establishment for both men and women. It has been our dream from the start in 2008 to grow the team, with its vulnerable economics, into a revolutionary, durable cycling establishment.
“Several building blocks have now come to fruition, one of which is our Keep Challenging Center for athlete development and team optimisation. On top, we can concentrate on setting up new innovative projects that we are launching in the upcoming years and beyond, where we’re aiming to set new standards in biomechanics, aerodynamics and equipment. To have Sunweb so committed to that dream and our Keep Challenging vision, and so firm on our side whilst exploiting the partnership intelligently in terms of marketing and activation to grow their business, is the very best one could wish for.”
Team Sunweb is a German-registered team and was known as Giant-Alpecin before Sunweb assumed title sponsorship last year.