Aqua Blue to fold - How do you solve the issue?

[T-Bob]

Looks like yet another pro team is folding at the end of the year with Aqua Blue closing their doors and joining teams like Jelly Belly, BMC, Wiggle High-5 and others. Quickstep still haven't secured a title sponsor and are the most successful team of the year on wins alone. 

 

Question is how do you stop it from happening? How do you create a model which sustains the teams in a way that isn't only about what logo is on the front of their jersey? 

 

Seems their idea of an online bike store to support the team didn't work out. Looking back on it the semi-crazy rantings of Mr Tinkoff could hold some merit when compared to what we have now. 

 

Shame is there are now more good riders that are scrambling for a contact so late in the season. 

[T-Bob]

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/aqua-blue-sport-will-not-race-in-2019/

[T-Bob]

Interesting read fir all those that go straight to the TV rights debate. 

 

http://inrng.com/2018/08/pro-cycling-tv-boom/

[Bikalot]

Looks like yet another pro team is folding at the end of the year with Aqua Blue closing their doors and joining teams like Jelly Belly, BMC, Wiggle High-5 and others. Quickstep still haven't secured a title sponsor and are the most successful team of the year on wins alone. 

 

Question is how do you stop it from happening? How do you create a model which sustains the teams in a way that isn't only about what logo is on the front of their jersey? 

 

Seems their idea of an online bike store to support the team didn't work out. Looking back on it the semi-crazy rantings of Mr Tinkoff could hold some merit when compared to what we have now. 

 

Shame is there are now more good riders that are scrambling for a contact so late in the season. 

 

Kudo's to Aquablue for at least trying to change the business model, realising that the current model is not sustainable in the long term. I believe they also organised 'ride with a pro' experiences and camps. 

 

There does need to be some share of TV revenue to at least create an additional revenue stream for the teams.

[shaper]

1x drive chain, 1x season......

 

But on a more serious note, am sure the model they were developing could have worked it they were given more exposure.  When such teams win stages at the Vuelta but are then not invited back or given access to other high profile tours.... one has to ask what criteria, dodgy handshakes or a degree of the old guard are keeping out the pro-continental teams who are knocking on the door and changing things?

 

Sad to see this happen.....

[CAAD4]

Looks like yet another pro team is folding at the end of the year with Aqua Blue closing their doors and joining teams like Jelly Belly, BMC, Wiggle High-5 and others. Quickstep still haven't secured a title sponsor and are the most successful team of the year on wins alone.

 

Question is how do you stop it from happening? How do you create a model which sustains the teams in a way that isn't only about what logo is on the front of their jersey?

 

Seems their idea of an online bike store to support the team didn't work out. Looking back on it the semi-crazy rantings of Mr Tinkoff could hold some merit when compared to what we have now.

 

Shame is there are now more good riders that are scrambling for a contact so late in the season.

I didn't know that BMC were closing their doors. I thought the team secured a new sponsor and title name with CCC or something like that?

[T-Bob]

I didn't know that BMC were closing their doors. I thought the team secured a new sponsor and title name with CCC or something like that?

 

For sure, they merged to survive after BMC pulls the plug as title sponsor and the big O managed to pull a rabbit out of the hat and alot of riders had left as they couldn't wait any longer.  

 

Could imagine a situation where Chelsea and Arsenal were issuing statements mid season saying they were going to have to close doors at the end of the season because they couldn't find a name for the their shirt? Look at Cannondale's struggle recently as well and the current UCI president seems to just want to focus on over throwing Team Sky.