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Pro cycling transfers 2024/2025: Alaphilippe signs for Tudor, Hayter to Quickstep and Markus to Lidl-Trek
It’s all kicking off in the 2025 pro cycling transfer market. As we have now passed the watershed opening to the transfer market on 1st August, moves can start to be revealed publicly.
This means teams and riders can finally put us out of our misery and share the news of who’s gone where for 2025, though the rumours will keep on circling until all rosters are filled.
For the men, Simon Yates and Jai Hindley are among the hottest properties on the transfer market this year. There are also plenty of rumours brewing around riders cutting ties early. On the women’s side, Tour de France Femmes champion Demi Vollering is expected to move away from SD Worx-Protime, Visma-Lease a Bike are rumoured to be signing MTB World and Olympics champ Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, and Elisa Longo Borghini is on the market.
Confirmed: Julian Alaphilippe signs for Tudor Pro Cycling
Julian Alaphilippe has finally settled one of the hottest transfer deals of the year. After confirming his departure from the Belgian team at the Klassikoa at the beginning of August, he has gone on to sign a contract with Swiss team Tudor Pro Cycling.
This will end a turbulent decade with the Belgian squad led by Patrick Lefevre. Their relationship soured over the past two years and it became clear earlier in the year that Alaphilippe, a double world champion, would be heading elsewhere. Quickstep boss Patrick Lefevre seemed optimistic about Alaphilippe’s chances of staying with the team, saying, ‘If he chooses with his heart, then I think he will stay with us [Soudal Quickstep]’. The Belgian manager was aware of talks between Tudor and the Frenchman regarding his 2025 contract.
In an announcement given at the beginning of this week, Alaphilippe’s transfer was officially confirmed. Tudor Pro Cycling also disclosed that he will ride under a three-season-long contract. There, Alaphilippe will link up with Marc Hirschi, Michael Storer and Alberto Dainese to hunt UCI WorldTour victories and continue their pursuit to the top division of cycling.
‘I liked the Tudor Pro Cycling project from the beginning,’ Alaphilippe explains. ‘I saw the team arrive and develop, and I also know a few of the riders and staff members. What better way to mark a turning point in my career than with a new and ambitious project?’
It has also been confirmed that Dane Kasper Asgreen will leave the team along with Jan Hirt who finished inside the top 10 of the Giro d’Italia this year.
Confirmed: Ethan Hayter to Soudal-Quickstep
The current British road champion and European champion on the track, Hayter will leave Ineos after a five-and-a-half-year spell at the British team. Hayter’s new destination is Soudal-Quickstep. He will bring the red, white and blue national jersey to the Belgian squad.
The Londoner is still riding a mix of track and road. He is a solid all-rounder on the road with a particular knack for time-trialling. He is also very competent at rolling profiles and tamer stage races. At Soudal, this should be nurtured well.
‘From the outside, it has always looked like a great team to be part of,’ Hayter says in the team’s announcement article. ‘This new challenge is something that motivates me for next season’.
Soudal-Quickstep have also announced the signing of Maximilian Schachmann in recent weeks as well as Pascal Eenkhoorn. Schachmann, a two-time winner of Paris-Nice, will return to the team he started his pro career. For Eenkhoorn, this will mark the end of a short stint at Lotto-dstny.
Confirmed: Riejanne Markus signs to Lidl-Trek
29-year-old Riejanne Markus has announced that she will leave Team Visma-Lease a Bike for Lidl-Trek. The American team will be the home of the Dutchwoman until the end of 2027.
Markus finished the Vuelta Femenina as runner-up earlier this year. This comes as Markus has improved her GC pedigree over the years. She is also one of the strongest time-triallists in the women’s peloton with a number of national titles to her name.
Lidl-Trek are losing Elisa Longo Borghini at the end of 2024. The team has extended the contract of fifth-place Tour finisher Gaia Realini on the other hand. Markus will slot in as a strong secondary leader in the Grand Tours. With a stronger team around here, she may rise up the ranks even more.
Confirmed: Marc Hirschi signs for Tudor Pro Cycling
Fresh from a UCI WorldTour victory at the Klassikoa, Marc Hirschi has confirmed his transfer to Tudor Pro Cycling. The Swiss team headed by Fabian Cancellara has been growing in the past few seasons. As shown by making their Grand Tour debut at the Giro this year, the squad has been rising through the ranks courtesy of some big-name transfers such as Alberto Dainese, Arvid de Kleijn, Michael Storer and Matteo Trentin.
Hirschi will lead the squad’s Classics line-up in the years to come. Tudor have secured some top-tier race invites including Paris-Nice and Tirenno-Adriatico. The Swiss team is not far off from a promotion to the UCI WorldTour in the next five years. With all-stars like Hirschi, they could garner more attention and wildcard invitations to achieve this goal.
This transfer brings to an end Hirschi’s four-year-long partnership with UAE Team Emirates. He signed for the team at the beginning of 2021 after an abrupt divorce with Team DSM. Since then, Hirschi has scored some solid one-day victories, but he only made two Grand Tour appearances during his four seasons at the team.
Along with Hirschi and Alaphilippe, Tudor Pro Cycling have brought in Swiss Fabian Lienhard and Austrian Marco Haller. The latter finished inside the top ten in the Olympics road race.
Confirmed: Alberto Bettiol to Astana
A shock move to some, the Tuscan Alberto Bettiol has left EF Education-First. With this, it has been confirmed that Alberto Bettiol has received a strong offer from Astana Qazaqstan, soon to be rebranded to XDS following the change of sponsors. Gazzetta Dello Sport correctly reported that Bettiol would move as soon as mid-August 2024. This means he is now contracted with Astana until 2027.
The reasons for this transfer seem unknown. Bettiol has been with EF on and off since the beginning of his career. He has been given leadership roles and a chance to flourish in one-day races and stage races alike.
With the Italian jersey on his back, Astana will be glad to welcome back the tricolore jersey. Astana are in desperate need of some UCI points. The squad look poised for relegation if they don’t improve on their results in the next year. If this continues, the squad’s relegation would come into effect in 2026.
Confirmed: Juliette Labous moves to FDJ-Suez
Juliette Labous, an eternal fixture in the top five of women’s Grand Tour GCs, has announced her departure from Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL. After riding for the German team since 2017, when Labous was just 17 years old, the French rider will move across to FDJ-Suez.
Labous has signed a three-year contract, which will see her through until her 29th birthday. Labous will join Demi Vollering at FDJ-Suez if we are to believe the rumours. Évita Muzic will also provide another key card for FDJ-Suez next year. With these signings, FDJ-Suez is quickly becoming a super-team within the women’s peloton.
‘French champion and top five in the last two Tours de France, Juliette is a remarkable athlete and undeniably one of the best climbers in the professional peloton,’ says FDJ-Suez’s team’s general manager Stephen Delcourt. ‘We are also honoured by Juliette’s confidence in our project and our vision. Her arrival is another step towards realising our sporting ambitions,’ he continues.
Confirmed: Wout Poels surprises with a move to Astana
In a surprising turn in the 2024/2025 transfer window, Wout Poels has announced his departure from Bahrain Victorious in favour of joining Astana Qazaqstan.
The team is in desperate need of UCI points to fend off a probable relegation at the end of 2025. Alexander Vinokourov, the team’s principal, described Poels as ‘a very experienced and strong rider who can both support other riders and contribute to the team’s strategy from within the race as a captain, while also fighting for victories and podiums in both stage races and the classics’.
Poels has been a solid addition to plenty of teams through the years, including Quickstep, Team Sky and Bahrain. He bagged two Grand Tour stages last year with a win at the Tour and Vuelta. He also has a Monument win under his belt at the 2016 Liège-Bastogne-Liège. He’s also finished inside the top ten at the Vuelta on two occasions. Turning 37 in October, Poels has signed a one-year contract.
Confirmed: Cofidis reinforced with Alex Aranburu and Emu Buchmann
Cofidis are in the fight for WorldTour survival as well. They are close to the relegation zone and need to change their strategy after a lacklustre season. In the quest for UCI points, the French team have enlisted Spanish sprinter Alex Aranburu and German climber Emanuel Buchmann.
Aranburu’s departure from Movistar was widely reported. While at Movistar over the past three seasons, Aranburu’s results have been mixed. With this deal secured with Cofidis, Aranburu will become a core rider in the team. The Spanish rider is a great signing for gathering UCI points. Aranburu can get over small climbs and he can time-trial well. If he’s used wisely next year, he could save Cofidis’ WorldTour licence.
Emu Buchmann is another solid signing. Cofidis have relied upon Guillaume Martin and Ion Izaguirre. With Buchmann, a former top five finisher at the Tour de France, the team have another card to play. Buchmann’s departure comes after being left out of Bora’s Grand Tour squads. At Cofidis, he will become a GC leader at the Giro or Tour.
Confirmed: Simon Yates to Visma-Lease a Bike, O’Connor to replace him at Jayco
It has been formally announced this month that Simon Yates’s next destination will be Visma-Lease a Bike. The British rider has penned a contract with the team until 2026.
Despite previous interest from Israel-Premier Tech, Dutch squad Visma-Lease a Bike won the hunt for Yates’s signature. Much like his brother Adam at UAE, Simon will be hoping to star in a powerful mountain train at future Tours de France.
Visma-Lease a Bike director Grischa Niermann said that Yates would provide ‘a significant boost for the general classification squad. Simon will have the opportunity to go for his own results with us, but he will also be a valuable asset for the team in the mountains.’
After ten years spent at Jayco-AlUla, this will mark the end of one of cycling’s longest-running partnerships, which saw Yates claim a Vuelta a España victory and a Giro d’Italia podium.
With Yates gone, Jayco-AlUla have announced that they will bring in Perth-born Ben O’Connor. High in confidence from a fourth-place finish at the Giro in May, O’Connor will lead Jayco-AlUla’s Tour de France hopes for at least the next two seasons. Despite his Australian nationality, O’Connor has never ridden for the GreenEdge project.
Along with O’Connor, Paul Double, Koen Bouwman and Patrick Gamper will join the squad. All three of these riders are strong climbers. Bouwman won the maglia azzurra at the Giro d’Italia in 2022 while Paul Double finished in 3rd place overall at the Tour of Turkey.
Confirmed: Alexey Lutsenko to Israel-Premier Tech
A frontman for Astana Qazaqstan, Alexey Lutsenko will leave the Kazakh squad after 12 years spent with the team. In exchange, Lutsenko will move to Israel-Premier Tech for the next seasons. The 31-year-old has finished in the top 10 of the Tour twice with the Kazakh team and has claimed Tour and Vuelta stages while riding in the baby blue of Astana.
‘After 12 great years with Astana, I am looking for the motivation I need to achieve new goals,’ explains Lutensko. ‘Sometimes you need to leave your comfort zone to achieve something new. I have nothing but good things to say about my time with Astana Qazaqstan Team, I achieved a lot and I’m grateful for this team, but I feel I have the potential to do more in a new environment.’
This move comes after Astana announced a future collaboration with Chinese carbon fibre company XDS. The team will evolve into a Chinese-Kazakh squad with a roster that might include the current Italian champion Alberto Bettiol.
Rumour: Demi Vollering and Elisa Longo Borghini expecting moves
Two of the top riders in women’s cycling look set for big transfers at the end of this season. Neither has been confirmed yet, but strong rumours are circling.
A staple of Lidl-Trek’s success in the women’s peloton, Elisa Longo Borghini is set to leave the American squad at the end of 2024. This will see the end of a five-year-long stint with the team that has carried her to Paris-Roubaix and Ronde van Vlaanderen glory.
The Italian’s departure was confirmed after the Vuelta Femenina by Lidl-Trek team manager Luca Guercilena in Italian newspaper Gazzetta Dello Sport. Guercilena also confirmed that Lidl-Trek tried to extend the contract of the Italian national champion, but she has decided that her future lies elsewhere.The destination has emerged to be UAE Team ADQ, although, this news awaits official confirmation.
In March, news broke that Demi Vollering will be leaving SD Worx-Protime at the end of 2024. After a partnership that has resulted in Classics victories and a Tour de France Femmes title, the Dutch champion will go elsewhere for 2025.
Although it’s perhaps not a surprise given the increasing powers of Lotte Kopecky and return of Anna van der Breggen next season, Vollering is the biggest name in the women’s market this year and there is a fierce and exclusive battle for her signature.
Sources disclose that Vollering’s agent was in serious talks with Lidl-Trek up until the Tour of Flanders when the American team pulled back their interest in support of their current roster’s future objectives. FDJ-Suez remain a strong contender, but the viability of this rumour is up in the air as the team lays eyes on other objectives. Elsewhere, UAE Team ADQ have fallen out of the mix.
Rumour: Tom Pidcock could leave Ineos
Following a gold medal in the men’s cross-country event at the Paris 2024 Olympics, it is rumoured that Tom Pidcock will leave Ineos Grenadiers. Reports state that Pidcock is looking to cut his deal with Ineos Grenadiers early and that he ‘could be on the transfer market in a matter of weeks’ according to Daniel Benson.
It is rumoured that two teams are in the running for Pidcock: Lidl-Trek and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe is a natural match. The team has hosted mountain bikers before, including Victor Koretzky who won the silver medal in Paris. Pidcock is also already a Red Bull UK athlete and works closely with the brand.
Lidl-Trek have received a big budget increase too, plus Trek already have a mountain bike team and the squad have added more multi-discipline riders over the past two seasons.
These rumours come alongside Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s Ineos departure. The women’s cross-country World and Olympic champion will reportedly move to Visma-Lease a Bike to return to road racing, with her sights set on the Tour de France. With her exit, Ineos’s women’s project looks to be coming to an end.
Other men’s rumours and confirmations
There are plenty of rumours awaiting confirmation within the men’s peloton.
Remco Evenepoel’s current domestiques Fausto Masnada and Jan Hirt are reported to be on the move for 2025. The former, a podium finisher at Il Lombardia, will move to the Swiss-South African Continental squad Q36.5, while Hirt, a top ten finisher at the Giro on two occasions, will head to Israel-Premier Tech.
In terms of confirmations, Laurence Pithie and Finn Fisher-Black bring two Kiwis into Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Simon Carr has signed for Cofidis from EF. As we previously reported, Jonathan Narváez and Florian Vermeersch have signed contracts for 2025 with UAE Team Emirates.
Other women’s rumours
For the women, Lotte Kopecky and Lorena Wiebes have penned hefty contract extensions until 2028. They are no longer available for 2025.
There are big changes expected at Canyon-SRAM. Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig looks set to make the jump from FDJ-Suez to Canyon-SRAM for 2025. The potential arrival of Demi Vollering and the current rise of French climber Évita Muzic threaten Uttrup Ludwig’s niche within the team. Chiara Consonni, already a stage winner at the Giro d’Italia Women, is also linked to Canyon-SRAM. This means that Consonni will exit UAE Team ADQ before the rumoured signing of Elisa Longo Borghini comes into effect.
Ingvild Gåskjenn, a breakout star from the spring Classics, has penned a contract with UnoX Mobility. Former world champion Amelie Dideriksen, however, is on her way out of UnoX. She will move to Cofidis in 2025.
Curious where the money for these big contracts comes from? Brush up our breakdown of all the WorldTour team sponsors
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