"And Now a Word from the Sponsors..."
The sponsors of Pro Cycling Teams and Who they are...

By Jan Janssens

Sponsorship value of Pro and elite cycling teams is accomplished by getting the sponsors name in front of the media and especially the television cameras in major races. Commercial teams carry the name of their sponsor and are named for the sponsor, the name of the main or name sponsor is in them most prominent location on the riders jersey and short. Lesser sponsors have less prominent locations on the jersey based on the investment in supporting the team.

Flying your sponsors name in a long breakaway or solo attack, getting on the podium, and popularity as a team or rider gets the sponsors name recognized and known. A long break can mean having the riders name and the sponsors name mentioned during a race and afterwards in the reports and video carried by all the media outlets. The sponsor's marque/name are seldom separated in any mention of a winning performance or heroic effort.

Thor Hushovd (Credit Agricole) celebrates in Paris.         Photo c. Ben Ross

The more a rider or team wins or is active in breakaways the more the riders team sponsor is mentioned in the media in all forms from newspapers, the internet and on TV, all this is a constant reminder and exposure for the sponsor and his name. Of course the more a rider wins the more valuable he is to the team and the team sponsors; and the exposure grows dramatically with winning riders like Paolo Bettini, Tom Boonen, Alejandro Valverde, Damiano Cunego among others. A popular and winning rider becomes an additional source of exposure with photos of him pre-race, in interviews or even training on the road in the team kit producing an added value to the marque that chooses to sponsor a team.

Tom Boonen World Champion (Quickstep/Innergetic) wins a stage in the 2006 Paris Nice. Photo c. Fotoreporter Sirotti

Below is a list of the ProTour Teams and their main sponsors and some of the Continental teams, the list is in no way complete. Often the fans don't know what the sponsors or foreign firms produce. This should give a glimpse into the many types of business that have found it valuable to sponsor a pro team and riders.

Pro Tour
AG2R Prévoyance: Insurance company http://www.ag2r.com/
Bouygues Telecom: Telecommunications  http://www.bouyguestelecom.fr/

Caisse d'Espargne/Illes Balears and Astana on the final 2006 Vuelta Podium - Valverde, Vino and Kashechkin
Photo © Unipublic

Caisse d’Epargne-Illes Balears:
Bank http://www.caisse-epargne.fr
Local government http://www.illesbalears.es
Cofidis: Consumer credit http://www.cofidis.fr/
Crédit Agricole: Bank http://www.credit-agricole.fr/

Even a pre race photo like this one of David Zabriskie by Bart Hazen Cyclingfx becomes an opportunity for exposure for his sponsor CSC.

CSC: IT company http://www.csc.com/

Davitamon-Lotto:
Pharmaceutics http://www.davitamon.nl/
Belgian national lottery http://www.lotto.be

Discovery Channel: TV channel http://www.discovery.com/
Euskaltel: Telecommunications http://www.euskaltel.es
Française des jeux: French national lottery http://www.fdjeux.com/
Gerolsteiner: Mineral water http://www.gerolsteiner.de

An event such as the recent wind tunnel tests of Damiano Cunego in Texas, becomes a chance for the sponsors and the team bike to gain some mention of the team and get the sponsors name more attention. Photo c. Lampre/Fondital

Lampre-Fondital:
Steel manufacturer http://www.lampre.com/
Radiators http://eng.fondital.it
Liquigas-Bianchi:
Gas company http://www.liquigas.it/
Bike manufacturer http://www.bianchi.it/

Paolo Bettini Flies the Flag of Sponsors Quickstep/Innergetic in the Giro dell'Emilia. Quickstep/Innergetic can be happy that the second year in a row the world road championship jersey will wear their name above the rainbow rings.  Photo c. Fotoreporter Sirotti

Quickstep-Innergetic:
Flooring http://www.quick-step.com/
Mattresses http://www.innergetic.com/

Gerolsteiner (Levi Leipheimer), Rabobank (Denis Menchov) and Phonak (Floyd Landis) land some TV time and attention for their sponsors on Stage 11 of the Tour de France. Photo c. Fotoreporter Sirotti

Rabobank: Bank http://www.rabobank.nl
Saunier Duval-Prodir:
Airconditioning and heating http://www.saunierduval.fr
Office equipment, pens http://www.prodir.com/

The envy of any sponsor is to be in this picture and mentioned on the Podium of the Tour de France with the winners of the classifications,  2006: Robbie McEwen (Davitamon/Lotto), Floyd Landis (Phonak), Michael Rasmussen (Rabobank) and Damiano Cunego (Lampre/Fondital).

Milram: Dairy firm http://www.milram.de/
T-Mobile: Telecommunications http://www.t-mobile.com/
Astana: Investment group from Kazakhstan
Phonak: Hearing aids http://www.phonak.com/
Liberty Seguros-Würth
Insurance company http://www.libertyseguros.pt
Industrial screws, bolts, etc. http://www.wurth.com/

Continental teams:
Europe Tour
Acqua & Sapone-Caffe Mokambo:
Soap http://www.acquaesapone.it/
Coffee http://www.mokambo.it/
Unibet.com: Betting agency www.unibet.com
Omnibike Dynamo Moscow: Bicycle manufacturer http://www.omnibike.ru/
Chocolade Jacques-Vlaanderen:
Chocolate http://www.chocojacques.be
Government-funded youth program
Ceramica Panaria-Navigare:
Tiles http://www.panaria.it/
Yachting & sportswear http://www.riese.it/

Perutnina Ptuj: Health food http://www.perutnina.com
Barloworld: Construction http://www.barloworld.com
Agributel: Dairy & Farm Equipment http://www.agritubel.com/
Wiesenhof-Akud:
Meat http://www.wiesenhof-online.de/
IT company http://www.akud.info
Comunidad Valenciana: Local government http://www.comunitatvalenciana.com/

America Tour
Selle Italia-Serramenti Diquigiovanni:
Bicycle saddles http://www.selleitalia.com/
PVC parts http://www.diquigiovanni.it
Universidad autonoma de Guadelajara: University http://www.uag.mx/
Navigators Insurance cycling team: Insurance company http://www.navg.com/
Toyota-United Pro cycling team:
Car manufacturer http://www.toyota.com/
Cooling fans and LED’s http://www.unitedpro.com/
Health net presented by Maxxis:
Health care service https://www.healthnet.com/
Tire manufacturer http://www.maxxis.com/

USA Div III
KBS - Kelly Benefits Cycling Team
Insurance and Financial Services: http://www.kellybenefitstrategies.com/
Jelly Belly - Candy Jelly Beans: www.jellybelly.com
Colavita/Sutter Home Men’s Cycling Team Presented by Cooking Light
Colavita Olive Oil: http://www.colavita.com/
Sutter Home Wines: http://www.sutterhome.com/
Cooking Light Magazine: http://www.cookinglight.com/cooking/
Jittery Joes/Zero Gravity
Coffee: http://www.jitteryjoes.com/index.php?section=1
Coffee Business Franchise
Bike Components: http://www.zerogravitybike.com/
Kodak Gallery/Sierra Nevada
Photo Services: http://www.kodakgallery.com/Welcome.jsp
Sierra Nevada Beer: http://www.sierranevada.com/
Symmetrics Cycling team: Software/Business Service http://www.symmetrics.net/

former:
Saturn: Automobile
Mercury: Ford - Mercury automobiles.
7UP/Nutra Fig: Soft drink bottler, Nutra fig Cheetah energy bars.

Africa Tour
Cycling team Capec: Express delivery  http://www.capec.org
Team Konica Minolta: Electronics parts http://konicaminolta.com/
Jartazi-7mobile:
Sportswear  www.jartazi.com
Mobile phones  http://www.7mobile.be/

Asia Tour
Giant Asia racing team: Bike manufacturer  www.giant-bicycles.com

Oceania Tour
Drapac Porsche: Property developer  http://www.drapac.com.au
Southaustralia.com-AIS:
Local government  http://www.southaustralia.com 
Australian Institute of Sport  http://www.ais.org.au

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