Ineos Grenadiers, the UK-based road cycling team owned by billionaire investor Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has confirmed Danish IT firm Netcompany as a co-title sponsor in a lucrative five-year deal.
Under the long-term agreement, the outfit will be renamed the Netcompany Ineos Cycling Team and race in new kit and colours from the start of the 2026 Giro d’Italia, which begins on May 8.
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Ineos Grenadiers claims the deal represents “one of the most significant technological and commercial partnerships in professional cycling.”
Copenhagen-based Netcompany will reportedly pay as much as €100 million ($117 million) across the next five years.
As part of the tie-up, Pulse, Netcompany’s European AI-driven digital platform, will be embedded across the team, the individual riders, and the races.
The technology will enable “real-time collaborative decision-making by distilling multiple inputs into a unified data source to maximise performance impact.”
As part of the long-term strategic partnership, Ineos has secured Pulse licenses for the entire period. This will mark the first deployment of the AI platform into sport.
Sir Dave Brailsford, team principal and director of sport for Ineos, said: “This is one of the most significant partnerships in cycling – a real vote of confidence not only in our team, but in the sport itself. It’s a major moment for us and marks the beginning of a new chapter.
“This is more than a sponsorship, it’s a partnership with purpose. It brings long-term stability, giving us the platform to invest in performance over time – building the foundations to win, and keep winning. Ultimately, it’s about creating the conditions to win the Tour de France.”
Ineos will retain control of the team, but the British petrochemical giant will relinquish sole sponsorship branding for the first time. Other prominent sponsors, such as TotalEnergies, will remain connected to the team
Ratcliffe’s company acquired sole control of the cycling team, formerly known as Team Sky, in 2019, and has since been the sole naming rights holder of the side.
Ineos has bankrolled the Grenadiers team into a strong position as one of the top franchises on the UCI World Tour, with one of the largest budgets, a strategy that resulted in much early success, including back-to-back Giro d’Italia wins in 2020 and 2021, but in recent years, the team has struggled to maintain a top position in the WorldTour pack.
Indeed, Ineos Grenadiers has failed to replicate Team Sky’s dominance of the Tour de France over the 2010s, with the ascension of rival teams with similar or even greater budgets like UAE Team Emirates-XRG and Visma-Lease a Bike proving a major obstacle.
Now, with the increasing investment in other sides such as Lidl-Trek, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, and Decathlon CMA CGM, Ineos Grenadiers risk sliding further down the UCI WorldTour pecking order.
The biggest teams in the sport have budgets close to €60 million, with the €40 million mark considered the minimum required to be a top contender for 'Grand Tour' success.
With much of Ratcliffe’s cash now tied up in English soccer giants Manchester United, the addition of a new title sponsor to his cycling endeavour may have the dual effect of lessening the financial burden on the billionaire, while aiding Ineos Grenadiers in its bid to return to the front of the peloton.
On the Netcompany deal, Ratcliffe commented: “I’m really pleased to welcome Netcompany to the cycling team, establishing a new long-term partnership that will help create the right conditions to deliver more success.
“This collaboration brings additional resource, technology, and capability across performance and operations to give the team the ability to compete consistently at the highest level of the sport.”
Ineos Grenadiers’ top riders currently include former Tour de France and Giro d’Italia winner Egan Bernal, former Tour de France stage winners Kevin Vauquelin and Michał Kwiatkowski, climber Oscar Onley, and time trial specialist Filippo Ganna.
Netcompany becomes the third new commercial partner secured by the UK team in the past week, after advisory, broking, and solutions company WTW and coffee brand Café de Colombia.
Through a three-year tie-up, WTW will serve as the team’s exclusive global insurance partner, while Café de Colombia has come on board as the team’s official coffee partner.
