At the level of the big teams with half the budget: the economic miracle of Alpecin-Deceuninck

With Deceuninck's departure from sponsorship, without a replacement being announced yet, it might seem like everything looks bleak for Alpecin. However, in recent years, the Rodhoft brothers have shown that they know how to make every euro count, managing to have a tremendously competitive team with a budget well below that of the larger teams in the peloton.

Alpecin competes with the big teams with less than half the budget of UAE Team Emirates-XRG

From the cycling website Lanterne Rouge, they have managed to find out, by investigating the public records of Belgian companies, the budget figures that Alpecin-Deceuninck has been handling in recent years. These numbers range from 19 million euros in 2019 to 26.8 million that the team had last year.

These figures are light years away from the estimated 60 million euros budget of UAE Team Emirates-XRG, but Alpecin-Deceuninck has managed to achieve great results, with 18 victories this season, including the two monuments, Milan-San Remo and Paris-Roubaix won by Mathieu van der Poel.

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Indeed, Van der Poel and Jasper Philipsen have been the main pillars of this team despite having other highly skilled riders like Kaden Groves or the emerging Tibor del Grosso. In any case, it is likely that, except for their two main leaders, salaries within the Belgian team are quite modest compared to the average in the current World Tour peloton.

Despite the financial restraint maintained by the Alpecin team, there is still the question of who will fill the gap left by Deceuninck next year and whether the new sponsorship that may arrive will bring an increase in resources. It is not a big problem in terms of keeping Mathieu van der Poel on the team, as he has grown under the guidance of the Rodhoft brothers and has a significant portion of his salary secured by a personal contract with the bike company Canyon. However, it is important to avoid financial constraints and ensure the best possible support for their leaders.

In any case, the Rodhoft brothers are a well-known institution in Belgian cycling and are likely already reaching out to all their contacts to secure a new sponsorship before the start of the 2026 season, providing the necessary financial stability, which, obviously, is often reflected in sporting results.