Women’s cycling will have ProTeams a year earlier than originally anticipated, with the UCI saying it would introduce the second tier of professional cycling, to sit below Women’s WorldTeams, in 2025.
There is currently no middle ground between the UCI WorldTour teams and the UCI Continental category in women’s cycling, unlike in the men’s side of the sport which also has ProTeams. ProTeams are registered with the UCI, have a minimum salary requirement and are also required to submit a bank guarantee which can be drawn on if a team does not fulfill its financial commitments.
Women’s cycling will also soon have this ProTeam structure in place and, in another shift toward aligning the models, the UCI said stakeholders in women’s professional road cycling were to be integrated into the Professional Cycling Council, which will become responsible for matters relating to the Women’s WorldTour as well as the men’s WorldTour from 2024 onwards.
"With the creation of a second division of women’s professional teams and the extension of the Professional Cycling Council’s remit to the highest level of women's cycling, the sector is continuing the impressive progress it has made in recent years,” UCI President David Lappartient said in a statement. “These advances will boost the sector and provide further evidence of its growth.”
The pitfalls with the lack of a middle ground in women's cycling were highlighted this year when UCI Continental team Zaaf Cycling, which was routinely competing at top tier races early in the season, was de-registered after it fell below the required minimum number of riders after eight riders walked away from the programme after allegations that some riders and staff salaries had not been paid. Given that this was a UCI Continental team, rather than a WorldTeam, there was no UCI requirement that all riders must receive a minimum salary and no bank guarantees to fall back on.
A UCI Continental team is recognised and certified by the national federation, not the UCI, may or may not be professional and for UCI women’s team has to have a minimum of 8 riders and maximum of 16. Women’s WorldTour teams on the other hand are registered with the UCI, have a bank guarantee which can be drawn on and are fully professional with minimum salaries guaranteed and from ten to 22 riders on a team.
"The introduction of this division, positioned between the existing UCI Women's WorldTeams (1st division) and UCI Women's Continental Teams (to become 3rd division), was initially scheduled for the 2026 season. However, in view of the current boom in women's cycling, and following consultation with stakeholders, the decision was taken to bring forward the launch by one year," said the UCI in a statement disclosing the decision.
"This new initiative will also enable a greater number of female riders to benefit from a professional framework. With the introduction of the women's UCI ProTeams, women's teams are now structured according to the same model as men's teams. As professional teams, the women’s UCI ProTeams will follow the same registration procedure as the other professional teams (UCI Women's WorldTeams, UCI WorldTeams and men’s UCI ProTeams) by registering directly with the UCI."
The changes to the team structure are one of many alterations to the way women's cycling operates that have occurred in recent seasons. Other developments including minimum salaries for Women's WorldTeam riders, a dramatic expansion of the calendar, a neo pro category and the introduction of official development teams.
There has, however, been concern that the top-level developments are not trickling down adequately through the remainder of the peloton with the Cyclists Alliance rider survey over the years having repeatedly pointed to a widening wage disparity. The introduction of ProTeams appears to be another measure to help narrow the gap between the top tier and rest of the peloton and provide a broader base for the continued growth of women's cycling.
