The year is about to come to and end. That seems to be the perfect moment to catch up with the UCI's decisions about the registration of the UCI WorldTeams for 2018, the teams which will participate in all UCI WorldTour races. At the same time we'll have a look at the second division teams, the Pro Continental teams.

The 18 UCI WorldTeams for 2018

For the 18 UCI WorldTeams there are no changes between 2017 and 2018, except for some name changes.

Therefore, we'll seize the opportunity to give you a look at the 2018 team kits for the different top level teams! Here's the full list (the teams indicated with a star * are the teams which were submitted to validation by the licence committee, either because they didn't fulfill all the criteria or because their UCI WorldTeam licence expired at the end of 2017; you can have a look at this infographic which explains the main decision criteria in the registration process for the UCI WorldTeams):

• AG2R La Mondiale (ALM)
  
• Astana Pro Team (AST)
  
• BMC Racing Team (BMC)
  
  The BMC team has added some blue to its usual team kit:
  
• Bora-Hansgrohe (BOH)
  
• Team Dimension Data (DDD)
• Team EF Education First-Drapac powered by Cannondale* (EFD)
  
  This of course is the team which was born from what was the Cannondale-Drapac team which was for some time about to disappear before EF came in to save it! The riders of the team will be quite visible in the peloton this year, with the pink fluo colour of their team kits:
  
• FDJ (FDJ)
  
  The FDJ team will start the season as Team FDJ, faithful to its sponsor which created the team 21 years ago, but right from the start of Paris-Nice on Saturday 4 March, the team will be renamed in Team Groupama-FDJ!
  
  
• Lotto Soudal* (LTS)
  
  For the new season the Lotto Soudal team added some coloured rounds, which remember the Lotto balls, to its team kit:
  
• Movistar Team (MOV)
  
  While remaining faithful to its sponsor, the Spanish team now takes a lighter blue colour for its team kit:
  
• Mitchelton-Scott (ORS)
  
  The Australian team Orica-Scott will be renamed on 1st of January into Mitchelton-Scott. The UCI still announced the name "Orica-Scott" in its press release and thus the registration code "ORS" but this code might thus change due to the name change.
  
• Quick-Step Floors* (QST)
  
• Bahrain-Merida (TBM)
  
• Team Katusha Alpecin (TKA)
  
  
• Team Lotto NL-Jumbo (TLJ)
  
• Team Sky (SKY)
  
  After having worn it in a few selected races in the previous years, Team Sky definitely adopts a white team kit for 2018:
  
• Team Sunweb (SUN)
  
• Trek-Segafredo (TFS)
  
  While training, the Trek-Segafredo team will wear a yellow fluo kit but in the races the team kit will still be red:
  
• UAE Team Emirates* (UAD)
  

What rights does it give to have a UCI WorldTeam licence?

Let's finally remember that even though the first division teams in cycling are now since a few years called UCI WorldTeams, they can -thanks to this licence- participate in the races of the UCI WorldTour calendar (where they're automatically invited but where they're also obliged to participate).

Furthermore, they can, when invited, participate in UCI Europe Tour races at the 1.HC or 2.HC level (maximum of 70% of the teams participating in such a race) or 1.1 or 2.1 level (maximum of 50% of the teams participating in such a race), the UCI America Tour races, UCI Asia Tour, UCI Oceania Tour or UCI Africa Tour races at the 1.HC, 2.HC, 1.1 or 2.1 level (maximum of 50% of the teams participating in such a race).

And the Pro Continental teams?

The second division of teams, the Pro Continental teams, now also shows a full list of registered teams. The new teams are shown in bold in this list:

- ANDRONI GIOCATTOLI – SIDERMEC (ANS)
- Aqua Blue Sport (ABS)
- BARDIANI CSF (BRD)
- BURGOS BH (BBH)
- CAJA RURAL – SEGUROS RGA (CJR)
- CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE* (CCC)
- COFIDIS, SOLUTIONS CREDITS (COF)
- DELKO MARSEILLE PROVENCE KTM (DMP)
- DIRECT ENERGIE* (TDE)
- EUSKADI BASQUE COUNTRY – MURIAS (EUS)
- PRO CYCLING BREIZH (FORTUNEO – OSCARO) (FST)
- GAZPROM – RUSVELO (GAZ)
- HAGENS BERMAN AXEON (HBA)
- HOLOWESKO | CITADEL P/B ARAPAHOE RESOURCES (HCA)
- ISRAEL – CYCLING ACADEMY* (ICA)
- MANZANA POSTOBON TEAM (MZN)
- NIPPO – VINI FANTINI – EUROPA OVINI (NIP)
- RALLY CYCLING (RLY)
- ROOMPOT – NEDERLANDSE LOTERIJ* (RNL)
- SPORT VLAANDEREN – BALOISE (SVB)
- TEAM NOVO NORDISK (TNN)
- UNITEDHEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL CYCLING TEAM (UHC)
- VERANDA'S WILLEMS CRELAN (VWC)
- VITAL CONCEPT CLUB (VCC)
- WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT (WGG)
- WB AQUA PROTECT VERANCLASSIC (WVA)
- WILIER TRIESTINA – SELLE ITALIA* (WIL)

In 2018 there will thus be no less than 27 pro continental teams after 22 in 2017 (before that there were 23 in 2016 and 20 in 2015).

door Thomas Vergouwen
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this publication is published in: UCI ProTour | Tour de France | Giro d Italia | Vuelta a España

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