The World Tour transfer market: the list of the first team changes for 2025

The arrival of August raises the curtain on the transfer market and teams begin trading riders for the upcoming season. Although some World Tour teams have decided to delay announcements until after the conclusion of the Olympic Games, others have already revealed the new destinations of some riders, such as Florian Vermeersch, Simon Yates, Ben O'Connor, and Jhonatan Narváez.

August revolutionizes the transfer market: teams announce the first official signings for 2025

Teams carefully plan the lineup of riders who will defend their colors in the upcoming season. This is a behind-the-scenes task that only comes to light starting in August, when the UCI allows transfers to be announced. The competitive season usually takes a back seat to an influx of news about jersey changes. This time has been no exception, and as usual, at this point, the new destinations of some riders have already been revealed.

Aside from transfers, attention must also be paid to those who have announced their retirement; among them, Rigoberto Urán, Cesare Benedetti - the cyclists from Euskaltel-Euskadi Ibai Azurmendi and Luis Ángel Maté, and the highly likely farewell of Mark Cavendish.

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The women's peloton eagerly awaits the arrival of two monumental figures. On one hand, Anna van der Breggen returns four years after retiring from cycling with Team SD Worx-Protime; despite the reduced pressure for results, her age of 34 and an impressive palmarès -two World Championships, two Giro wins, seven Flèche Wallonnes, and 2 Liège-Bastogne-Liège victories- suggest big things to come.

Pauline Ferrand-Prevot will be another major attraction in the transfer market. The French rider has ended her mountain biking career with a gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Rumors place her at Visma Lease a Bike, and although we will have to wait until next week to confirm, she already has her sights set on the 2025 Tour de France.

Florian Vermeersch - UAE Team Emirates

The 25-year-old Belgian rider is leaving Lotto Dstny and signing a two-year contract with UAE Team Emirates. His resume includes a second place in the 2021 Paris-Roubaix and a silver medal at the 2023 Gravel World Championship.

Vermeersch, who will strengthen the team for the spring classics, expressed that "it is a pleasure to be part of the best team in the professional peloton. For me, I would say it is a dream come true. I am also happy and relieved that, despite my serious accident and injury earlier this year, the team has shown full confidence in me and believed in my strengths."

Jhonatan Narváez - UAE Team Emirates

The former INEOS Grenadiers member is heading to UAE Team Emirates for the next two years. The Colombian has won eleven races as a professional - including two stages in the Giro and a gold at the 2023 Pan American Championship.

Narváez explained that it is an "honor" to be at UAE because "it is the best team in the world in recent years." He also added, "I feel that I have not yet reached my full maturity as a rider and I hope to continue progressing and improving both as a classics rider and an all-rounder."

Simon Yates - Visma Lease a Bike

The 31-year-old British rider - coming from Team Jayco AlUla - will move to Visma Lease a Bike for the next two seasons. The climber will be a significant reinforcement for the team, as evidenced by his victory in the 2018 Vuelta a España, six Giro stages, two in the Tour de France, and the Tirreno-Adriatico, among other wins.

Yates' role will involve pursuing his own results and providing support in the mountains. The cyclist stated, "This is a team I have admired for a long time, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to join."

Axel Zingle - Visma Lease a Bike

The 25-year-old Frenchman is leaving Cofidis for a new challenge with Visma Lease a Bike for a minimum of three years. The team was impressed by his performance in classics, as well as his sprinting ability and the belief that he still has room for improvement.

Zingle stated that it was "a dream come true" and that "in my opinion, this is the best cycling team in the world."

Ben O'Connor - Team Jayco AlUla

The Australian will join his home team, Team Jayco AlUla, as the lead rider to compete in the general classifications. Coming from Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale, the stage winner and fourth-place finisher in the Tour and Giro will have the responsibility of filling Simon Yates' shoes.

Guillaume Martin - Groupama-FDJ

The Frenchman will swap the colors of Cofidis for those of Groupama-FDJ for the next two seasons. After a year with mixed results and lacking the sensations that have made him a top rider in the peloton, he will seek to rediscover himself in a new environment.

Dylan Teuns, Sylvain Moniquet, and Valentin Ferron - Cofidis

The three riders have committed to Cofidis for two years. Teuns has achieved significant milestones throughout his career and now arrives with high motivation to achieve great results in the most important classics on the calendar.

Meanwhile, Moniquet excels in the mountains and classics. The cyclist explains that Cofidis is a team he really likes. It has an attacking mentality with many climbers and punchers who have been part of the team.

Ferron is the winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné and is excited about the prospect of joining Cofidis: "My dream, obviously, is to win a stage of the Tour de France, but I also hope to discover races like the Giro, races in Australia, Quebec-Montreal, etc."

Giulio Pellizzari - Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe

The arrival of Red Bull has raised the bar for the team, and the transfer market has confirmed this change within the team. Giulio Pellizzari - only 20 years old - makes the leap to one of the most promising squads of the moment after his impressive performance in the Giro, where he showed great ambition in breakaways.

Bob Jungels - INEOS Grenadiers

The experienced rider will wear the INEOS Grenadiers jersey for the next two years.

The Liege winner and stage winner in the Tour and Giro - as well as a six-time Luxembourg National Champion - explained that "I am delighted to join the INEOS Grenadiers. This is a team I have always admired, and this opportunity has come at the perfect time."