"It's not about money": Pogacar will renegotiate his contract with UAE before La Vuelta

Tadej Pogacar and the UAE Team Emirates-XRG are ready to further extend a relationship that already seemed secured for the long term. Alex Carera, the Slovenian's agent, has confirmed that he will meet with the team's management in Monaco this Friday to negotiate a possible extension until 2031, just one day before the Vuelta a España begins.

Pogacar and UAE negotiate the future beyond 2030

The negotiation is particularly striking because there is no contractual urgency. Pogacar is currently signed until the end of 2030, but both parties already want to start defining what the next chapter will look like in a relationship that has made the Slovenian the great sports and economic reference in current cycling.

According to Alex Carera's confirmation to Daniel Benson, the meeting will take place this Friday morning in Monaco and will include the presence of the team's president, Matar Suhail Al Yabhouni Al Dhaheri, and manager Mauro Gianetti.

The idea on the table is to add, at least, the 2031 season to Pogacar's current contract. However, Carera assures that the central point of the discussions will not be the salary.

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“Tadej is happy, but there are some points, and it’s not about money. We are going to talk about 2031”, explained his representative.

More than a simple renewal, the discussions seem aimed at building a contract specially tailored to Pogacar's situation. Carera speaks of “three or four important clauses” that will need to be discussed personally between the parties.

That’s why an immediate agreement is not necessarily expected. The Slovenian's representative admits that the discussions could extend for about a month because “it’s not a standard contract”.

The meeting will also take place at a very particular moment. Pogacar is in Monaco preparing for the start of the Vuelta a España, which will kick off on Saturday and where he will try to conquer the only Grand Tour still missing from his palmarès.

An 8 million per year contract that is already falling short compared to everything he generates

That money is not the main issue in the negotiation is even more relevant considering the economic dimension achieved by Pogacar.

Currently, his salary at UAE Team Emirates-XRG is around 8 million euros per year, a figure that already makes him by far the highest-paid cyclist in the peloton. But his actual earnings are significantly higher.

As we recently reported in Brújula Bike, estimates published by La Gazzetta dello Sport indicate that Pogacar will earn at least 13 million euros during 2026 from salary, bonuses, personal sponsorships, and merchandising.

In addition to the 8 million from UAE, his personal commercial agreements would contribute about 2.5 million, merchandising around one million, and his fifth victory in the Tour de France another million in bonuses. To this, an additional 500,000 euros would be added if he finishes the year as the number one in the world ranking.

And the figure could still grow. Winning the Vuelta would mean, according to those same reports, an additional bonus of 500,000 euros, while defending the World Championship would add another 250,000. In the best-case scenario, Pogacar could end 2026 with earnings of at least 13.75 million euros.

From thinking about Los Angeles 2028 as a possible end to negotiating until 2031

The possibility of extending his contract also changes the perspective on when Pogacar's sports career could end.

About a year ago, in an interview with L'Équipe, the Slovenian left open the possibility of retiring after the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. However, he has since insisted that he intends to fulfill his current contract with UAE until 2030.

Now the conversation is already a step further.

If he ultimately signs until 2031, Pogacar would continue competing past the age of 32 and would further strengthen a relationship with UAE that could even extend after his retirement. Recent reports have already pointed to that possibility and to the Slovenian's intention to remain linked to the Emirati structure for a long time.