Sponsors pulling out of pro cycling?

[Keith A]

Just got a text from a friend knows Tanner Putt that rides for UHC. He said that UHC, along with Jelly Belly and a third team just folded. He also said that the European sponsors are dropping even faster.

Anyone know what's going on?

[Keith A]

A quick search of the 'net found this...

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/jell...onsor-in-2019/
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/unit...-by-august-30/

[likebikes]

sounds like business as normal to me.

[Chris]

For the most part, I think cycling is a terrible venue for sponsors to actually see an ROI. It's generally wealthy guys who like cycling. In the US, road cycling has seen a pretty steady decline in participation and interest. Companies get a lot more eyes on the logo by advertising on YouTube.

[Alaska Mike]

Just like with the upper tiers, the sponsors usually have a cyclist in senior leadership pushing from within to sponsor a team. Even the best and most reliable sponsors leave eventually. Sometimes they're replaced by a bike company or oligarch, sometimes the team drops a tier, and sometimes they disappear altogether. It happens a lot.

The model has been broken for a very, very long time.

[FlashUNC]

Welcome to liking a dying professional sport.

There's some horse-racing and boxing fans who have stories to tell.

[prototoast]

Originally Posted by Chris

For the most part, I think cycling is a terrible venue for sponsors to actually see an ROI. It's generally wealthy guys who like cycling.

And unfortunately those wealthy guys who like cycling end up ruining the ROI for profit-minded companies who might otherwise be interested.

It's hard to think of an advertising goal that could be better achieved with a team sponsorship than with targeted advertising online. Especially in the United States where it's been years since we've had a rider who could realistically contend in a grand tour or big one day race.

[Bruce K]

And then there’s Floyd.... who is “rescuing one team.

But the two teams named have been in it for a long time. Everything comes to an end at some point. Especially when your product line evolves away from the sport (Jelly Belly) or you are now part of a conglomerate that sponsors two teams and you only want to support one (UHC)

BK

[saab2000]

Pro cycling, or what has passed as pro cycling, may be dying in the US but it seems to be more healthy in its traditional heartland of Europe. I recently attended the World Championship races in Innsbruck and they were well attended by fans from around Europe. I'm sure there are issues there too but it's a place where cycling has a long tradition, unlike the US, where it is a fringe sport at best and attempts at pro cycling events are generally contrived and manufactured events that don't really capture anyone's imagination.

The Colorado Cycling Classic of a few years ago is the natural event in the US and even that couldn't gain any traction. The Tour of California could disappear tomorrow and nobody would miss it.

The huge growth of adventure rides and gravel races has undermined organized road racing, which tends to be ultra elitist and exclusive. I participated in USCF races for years and know exactly what I'm talking about. Today's gravel events are way more fun, probably way safer and far, far more inclusive to riders of all skill levels. It's way less elitist.

If I were a sponsor I'd put money into these events before I'd sponsor a road team or road event.

[gemship]

Originally Posted by saab2000

Pro cycling, or what has passed as pro cycling, may be dying in the US but it seems to be more healthy in its traditional heartland of Europe. I recently attended the World Championship races in Innsbruck and they were well attended by fans from around Europe. I'm sure there are issues there too but it's a place where cycling has a long tradition, unlike the US, where it is a fringe sport at best and attempts at pro cycling events are generally contrived and manufactured events that don't really capture anyone's imagination.

The Colorado Cycling Classic of a few years ago is the natural event in the US and even that couldn't gain any traction. The Tour of California could disappear tomorrow and nobody would miss it.

The huge growth of adventure rides and gravel races has undermined organized road racing, which tends to be ultra elitist and exclusive. I participated in USCF races for years and know exactly what I'm talking about. Today's gravel events are way more fun, probably way safer and far, far more inclusive to riders of all skill levels. It's way less elitist.

If I were a sponsor I'd put money into these events before I'd sponsor a road team or road event.

Interesting as I read your take on this I draw this correlation between Cyclist sharing the road in Europe with drivers who are more accepting vs. cyclist in the US who seem to deal with more ignorance from drivers unwilling to share the road. With that in mind who here in America really wants a big race?

There's a big annual cyclocross event happening this weekend here in Gloucester, Ma. I think for a beginner it's easy, cheap enough to register and participate in but to really roll with all the events that are away from home it gets expensive. Heck just looking at the bikes yesterday, they look expensive. People ride in the mud and that looks expensive to clothing and equipment. Then theres a solid set of wheels, lodging, food, it really adds up. Even with some sponsors it seems like a lot of these folks, racers haver other lives, real jobs that they walk away from to race. Speaking for myself, Gloucester, Ma is my office, its where I live and work. If I leave the area I don't make money. I guess I need a different line of work with paid time off, lol but I just find it hard to see how people can do this racing thing but some do. Maybe I got it all wrong and the few that do are rich?

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

Welcome to liking a dying professional sport.

There's some horse-racing and boxing fans who have stories to tell.

Thinks that’s a little severe, ‘dying’...Shrinking for sure along with road cycling in general. Why, bike sales have been flat for a while, gas is still cheap, cycling, with distracted drivers, sure isn’t getting safer..I think that impacts pro road cycling sponsorships...

[Bruce K]

Gemship - Gloucester is one of the most expensive of all the cross races in the Northeast (along with KMC an event that is in pretty bad shape) but it is a tradition and part of the Vittoria series.

Not everyone who races cross is rich but owning the most up to date equipment is expensive, just like any other sport or pastime.

People manage to race cross races because they are fun and they do it on a budget with older equipment at smaller events that cost less.

Adventure events play to that market as well but, like cross, the time to train has a cost, the travel has a cost, a dedicated gravel bike has a cost. Or, you can "run what you brung" and have fun.

It's about the choices folks make for their recreation.

But you are also comparing mostly amateur/age group racers against pros who are trying to make a living at this.

If pro cycling went away today, the amateurs side would continue to thrive in cyclocross and adventure riding.

And we haven't even started to talk about mountain bikes....

BK

[livingminimal]

Time for a new sponsorship/support model for cycling.
Of course its been time for that for a long time.

Someone far smarter than I can offer rebuttal/correction/whatever on this point, but it feels like cycling is cannibalizing itself. Some teams have such massive investment (Sky) and corresponding exposure that it's devaluing sponsorship of other teams remarkably. It immediately reduces an already small pool of domestic NA companies willing to invest in cycling. I mean, realistically how much ROI was Jelly Belly seeing with increased costs all over the board?

It's also simply insanely expensive to be a name sponsor of a team. Hell, its expensive to be a minor sponsor of a WT team.

The market just isnt there in the states right now either. Anecdotally, it just feels like the pool of people that can converse with you around the shop or on rides on what happened this season in various races throughout the season is dwindling. There's no American that has a shot in a GT right now either, which definitely doesnt help the casual fans. I think some contracting and re-setting might be good. I am really, really, really excited to see how this Rapha/EF relationship works out. Some people will bemoan the death of core/grassroots gravel, I will celebrate more exposure to riding bikes, increased accessibility to professionals, and hopefully more butts on saddles.

[peanutgallery]

In the olden days, road shutdowns were cheap, municipalities were understanding, prize $ was good and races were aplenty. Anyone ever do super week, tour of Ohio or the myriad of crits that paid good money 20 places deep? You could live in a van by the river and do fine

Today, municipalities are under stress and held accountable to a different level. So the venue is crazy $, that gets into the prize list. Additionally, the event is promoted by Gene Dixon (definitely not the Jaycees)...and hes going thru another divorce, and so on and so forth. Bottom line, domestic racing is a bore and the flag is being carried by 40 and 50 year olds fighting to the death over 10 bucks behind a dumpster at an abadoned office park. It's just plain sad, if I bother to show for a group ride I'm still like the youngest one there

There's no silver bullet and bygones are bygones. The only fix is for USAC to take an interest in grassroots development. Racing, promoting, safety, signups...the whole thing. Otherwise it won't change. Putting on a race is just difficult anymore. Heck, any event that utilizes public resources is a huge hassle

In the meantime, have a blast doing gravel and dirt events. They're fun

[echappist]

ASO and RSC really ought to start coughing up TV right fees. Of course, they should pay themselves first by making sure that police and ambulance are paid, but after that, the participating teams ought to be paid a non-nominal sum for participating.

Some may say this encourages complacency, but the truth is that I don't know of any other sport where event organizers pay participants such a paltry sum, while pocketing the lion's share of licensing fees for themselves