On average, most Tour de France teams receive a large portion of their annual budget from their title sponsor. The budget is typically spent on various expenses that are related to the team’s operation, including salaries, travel, equipment, race fees, marketing, and other miscellaneous expenses.
Riders have a wide range of salaries between $45,000 to $6 million (2x Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar). And though most teams spend modestly, there are teams making huge investments in professional cycling.
While most lower-end teams have a budget of $10 million, higher-end teams like Ineos Grenadier spend up to $55 million annually.
Are Bigger Budgets Impacting Cycling Performance?
A trend has emerged in the last few years that bigger budgets impact the winning percentage.
Over the last decade, higher-spending teams have had a better chance of winning the Tour de France.
In the last 10 years, nine of the Tour de France titles have gone to teams that rank among the top four spenders. Unlike other sports, there is no salary cap on team budgets and this has resulted in higher-spending teams winning the Tour de France every year dating back to 2013.
Though the exact budget numbers can vary due to sponsorships and team size, the biggest budgeted teams remain the same year over year.
While budgets vary from year to year, Ineos Grenadier is generally the highest-spending team. This year, Quick-Step, Jumbo Visma, UAE Team Emirates, and Bahrain Victorious have the top five highest spending budgets.
Check out the top five highest-spending 2023 Tour de France teams below.
- Ineos Grenadier — $55 million
- Quick-Step — $38 million
- Jumbo-Visma — $29 million
- UAE Team Emirates — $22 million
- Bahrain Victorious — $22 million
Top Five Highest Spending Tour de France Teams
There are many different expenses required to manage a team. Along with paying for the best races, providing the riders with the right trainers, research, support, equipment, and travel accommodations can make a huge difference over the course of three weeks.
Ineos Grenadier leads all teams with a projected budget of $55 million, nearly 31 percent more than the next highest-spending team.
Get a breakdown of the top five biggest Tour de France budgets in 2023 below.
1. Ineos Grenadier — $55 million
Owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Team Ineos has been one of the most successful teams in the last 10 years, capturing 6 titles since 2013.
Ratcliffe has a net worth of $20.6 billion and has always provided his team with a top-2 budget.
The estimated budget in 2023 is said to be around $55 million.
2. Quick-Step — $38 million
The second highest budget is Soudal Quick-Step.
Owned by multi-billionaire Zdenek Bakala, Quick-Step has been one of the most successful teams in the sport, winning multiple national and world championships over the last two decades.
In 2006, the team won their first yellow jersey under Tom Boonen.
3. Jumbo-Visma — $29 million
While the funding from the Koninklijke Jumbo Food Groep will end in 2024, Jumbo-Visma is one of the oldest cycling teams dating back to 1984.
Since the formation of the team, Jumbo-Visma has entered every Tour de France since 1984.
The team won their first yellow jersey in 2022 under Jonas Vingegaard.
4. UAE Team Emirates — $22 million
The UAE Team Emirates is funded by the state-owned aviation company Emirates which made $3 billion in profit on $32.6 billion in revenue last year.
The team is highly invested in, as they won two back-to-back Tour de France titles in 2020 and 2021.
5. Bahrain Victorious — $22 million
Only founded in 2017, Bahrain Victorious has the fifth-highest budget in 2023 at $22 million.
While they have yet to win a Tour de France title, they’ve finished inside the top 45 since being founded.
In the last three years, Bahrain Victorious has finished just outside the podium with a 4th place (2020), 9th place (2021), and 14th place (2022).
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