UCI WorldTeam

UAE Team Emirates

Formed in 2017 from the remnants of Lampre-Merida, this team has slowly transitioned from a predominantly Italian outfit to a multinational one full of world-class riders.

Their first few years at cycling’s top level yielded some success, but it was after signing the Slovenian phenomenon Tadej Pogačar in 2019 that the UAE-based squad established themselves as one of the best teams in the men’s WorldTour.

Pogačar’s story since signing with UAE is well-known and, through him alone, the team has bagged two overall titles at the Tour de France, five Monuments, 14 Grand Tour stage wins, two editions of Tirreno-Adriatico, and two editions of their home race, the UAE Tour.

While he may be the best cyclist in the men’s WorldTour, Pogačar is still just one man - he can’t win everything on the calendar - as Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) has enjoyed demonstrating at the Tour de France.

To combat this and ensure that they can fly the UAE flag throughout all of the sport’s biggest races, the team has snatched several top riders from their rivals over recent years. In 2022 João Almeida joined from Quick-Step; for the 2023 season, the team poached Adam Yates from Ineos Grenadiers; and ahead of 2024, the team has been able to prise Pavel Sivakov from Yates' former employers.

Yates' first season with UAE Team Emirates was highly successful, yielding a third-place finish at the Tour de France and a stint in the yellow jersey, whilst Juan Ayuso and the recently-signed Isaac del Toro provide the team with a youthful energy that looks set to preserve their status as one of the best Grand Tour teams for years to come.

In 2024, Pogačar will hope to win both the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France, whilst the likes of Yates, Almeida, Sivakov and Vine could all eye up their own success at the Vuelta a España. Should Pogačar pull off the unlikely feat, the Slovenian will become the first man since Marco Pantani in 1998 to take the Giro-Tour double.

Read more from UAE Team Emirates:

• Tadej Pogačar: I never thought about skipping the Tour de France
• 'Not my problem!' says João Almeida of UAE's Tour de France hierarchy
• Pavel Sivakov: The pressure to win the Tour de France is on Visma-Lease a Bike
• Jay Vine: If I don't win another race from now on, I'd still be happy
• Adam Yates: UAE Team Emirates' Tour de France team will be a bit of a challenge
• Isaac del Toro: Chris Froome and Nairo Quintana inspired me to follow my dream

[@portabletext/react] Unknown block type "span", specify a component for it in the `components.types` prop

Provided by FirstCycling