End of taking the High Road?

[rata de sentina]

Easy there fella...

HTC is an American outfit; Stapleton is most likely looking for American sponsors.

Their current name sponsor is a Taiwanese company. Believe it or not they don't only sell their products into the US. Why the hell would he be focussing on a sponsor from a moribund economy like the US? Just because a team is nominally American is really irrelevant when it comes to sponsorship, you go where the money is. I hardly think that HTC sponsored the team for the US market they are aglobal company.

 

[Willy_Voet]

All those american sports have multi-billion dollar TV contracts, and the teams get a cut. Cycling is a sponsorship based sport. It is completely different. As the price to sponsor a major team goes up, the number of companies capable of doling out that kind of cash goes down. How much revenue does a company have to have to spend 12 million euro on a cycling team? I would not be surprised if there are ten to twenty times the number of companies capable of spending 5 million euros as the number capable of spending 12 million. The pool of potential sponsors is now limited to pretty large companies. The cost is so high now that it has priced out the medium sized company run by someone who raced when he was younger, has a passion for cycling, and is willing to ovespend his company's money to support his passion.

Good points re structure, size and cost. The PT concept (as it was sold to teams/organizers/public, was supposed to package the big races for marketing and TV rights. However, this has obviously never taken place.

The ASO is the best positioned of any organization to make this a reality.

On the other hand, the bigger $$ could just lead to worse behavior regarding Clinic issues...

 

[screaming fist]

In other sports the teams get TV money because they host the matches in their places (stadiums, halls etc) or places they rent. Cycling teams don't host any races, thus they have no part in the TV money.

However, cycling is still among the sports with the beste revenue per spent sponsor money - but with huge differences depending on countries. A Belgian company sponsoring a Belgian team benefits more than e.g. a Norwegian company would

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

In other sports the teams get TV money because they host the matches in their places (stadiums, halls etc) or places they rent. Cycling teams don't host any races, thus they have no part in the TV money.

The situation is twice as bad for cycling teams, because not only do they not get TV money, they don't have income from ticket sales either.

 

[just some guy]

The situation is twice as bad for cycling teams, because not only do they not get TV money, they don't have income from ticket sales either.

but very little in the way of overheads on the flip side.

 

[Eric8-A]

So 4 riders from HTC have said they'll be riding for different teams next year. How many more to come? It sure is looking like HTC will fold.

 

[Race Radio]

I have heard they are done....why no announcement?

 

[Ferminal]

I have heard they are done....why no announcement?

ALBASINI Michael
BAK Lars Ytting
BRAMMEIER Matthew
CAVENDISH Mark - Sky?
DEGENKOLB John
EISEL Bernhard - Sky?
FAIRLY Caleb
GHYSELINCK Jan
GOSS Matthew - Green Edge?
GRABSCH Bert
GRETSCH Patrick - Skil-Shimano
HOWARD Leigh - Green Edge?
LEWIS Craig
MARTIN Tony
PATE Danny
PINOTTI Marco
RABON Frantisek - Gone
RASMUSSEN Alex
RENSHAW Mark - Sky/Green Edge?
ROULSTON Hayden
SIUTSOU Kanstantsin - Sky?
SMUKULIS Gatis
VAN GARDEREN Tejay - BMC?
VELITS Martin - Quick Step
VELITS Peter - Quick Step

Also remember hearing rumours on Pinotti. No rumours of anyone joining.

I think I said it in the transfers thread, but a merge is the only hope they have now.

 

[Race Radio]

ALBASINI Michael
BAK Lars Ytting
BRAMMEIER Matthew
CAVENDISH Mark - Sky?
DEGENKOLB John
EISEL Bernhard - Sky?
FAIRLY Caleb
GHYSELINCK Jan
GOSS Matthew - Green Edge?
GRABSCH Bert
GRETSCH Patrick - Skil-Shimano
HOWARD Leigh - Green Edge?
LEWIS Craig
MARTIN Tony
PATE Danny
PINOTTI Marco
RABON Frantisek - Gone
RASMUSSEN Alex
RENSHAW Mark - Sky/Green Edge?
ROULSTON Hayden
SIUTSOU Kanstantsin - Sky?
SMUKULIS Gatis
VAN GARDEREN Tejay - BMC?
VELITS Martin - Quick Step
VELITS Peter - Quick Step

Also remember hearing rumours on Pinotti. No rumours of anyone joining.

I think I said it in the transfers thread, but a merge is the only hope they have now.

Yes, I heard Pinotti to Geox.....I really hope that does not happen

 

[Eric8-A]

I think I recall Vaughters saying he has some interest in Pinotti.

I wonder who'll pick up Rabon.

 

[just some guy]

There were rumors of Tony to Saxo as well.

 

[just some guy]

I have heard they are done....why no announcement?

Vaughters Jonathan Vaughters
@
@joshhilby @inrng...remember, my little shot at ASO "wanting TV rights" was in response to a question re HTC/HighRoad going bust.
3 hours ago

Vaughters Jonathan Vaughters
@joshhilby @inrng.. Its just wrong that the #1 team in the World can go belly up so easily. That was my point. Not gimme, gimme, gimme..
3 hours ago

 

[Swabian Lass]

I've heard the Tony to Saxo rumours. That would make sense for both sides, I guess. I've also heard that Van Garderen to BMC is a done deal, but who knows?

I reckon Quick Step have done well with the Velits, kind of buy Peter, get Martin free, deal.

 

[Eric8-A]

I've heard the Tony and Teejay rumours as well.

 

[hrotha]

This looks like last year Saxo alright. If Cav to Sky is a done thing, they're doomed - not because the rest can't win, but because Cav is their corporate image. And we're already seeing how everybody's trying to abandon the ship. Stapleton's hope is that Cav is actually his Voeckler, or he'll have to settle with a smaller team.

 

[Eric8-A]

Didn't Cavendish say he's singed to another team? He just didn't say which one it was.

 

[Swabian Lass]

No, he just said that he'd chosen which team he was going to, but couldn't say which yet. he actually said "I want to go to the best place to help me win. That might be the same place I am at now."

I read it as he was more likely to stay with HTC, but I might be wrong. He was clearly enjoying winding the journalist up.

 

[Damiano Machiavelli]

There still might be time to change the name to Dead End Road.

 

[spalco]

Didn't Cavendish say he's singed to another team? He just didn't say which one it was.

No, he hasn't announced where he's going yet. But if you think about it, Cavendish holding back that announcement makes especially sense if he's leaving since maybe he's trying to give High Road some extra time to find a sponsor without him so he doesn't **** over his old team mates more than necessary.

 

[greenedge]

I'm surprised that they have not announced yet/ been issued an ultimatum.

 

[Aleajactaest]

No, he hasn't announced where he's going yet. But if you think about it, Cavendish holding back that announcement makes especially sense if he's leaving since maybe he's trying to give High Road some extra time to find a sponsor without him so he doesn't **** over his old team mates more than necessary.

I doubt that is his reason. I suspect it was a favor to Stapleton, I don't think he really cares much what happens to anyone else.

I'm also not sure why people find this shocking. From day one their sponsor issues have persisted. Every year they start in spring with some sponsor and then around tour time they find someone to give them cash and get on the jersey.

Slipstream was the beginning but since then they added any number in combinations.

Garmin, chipoltle, columbia, HTC etc. None have stayed for long.

 

[Tuarts]

HTC about to announce at Poland that all riders are free for next season (according to Twitter). Game over?

 

[Ferminal]

HTC about to announce at Poland that all riders are free for next season (according to Twitter). Game over?

On twitter so it must be true!

I think most of us expected it after the failure to announce anything at the Tour.

 

[Ferminal]

So where are they all going to end up?

ALBASINI Michael - Back to Phonak?
BAK Lars Ytting - Maybe Saxo or Leopard?
BRAMMEIER Matthew - No idea
CAVENDISH Mark - Sky?
DEGENKOLB John - Whoever can get him!
EISEL Bernhard - Sky?
FAIRLY Caleb - A US Pro Conti?
GHYSELINCK Jan - Lotto?
GOSS Matthew - Green Edge?
GRABSCH Bert - A TTT team like Garmin or The Shack?
GRETSCH Patrick - Skil-Shimano
HOWARD Leigh - Green Edge?
LEWIS Craig - US Pro Conti
MARTIN Tony - Anywhere
PATE Danny - US Pro Conti
PINOTTI Marco - Geox... Garmin?
RABON Frantisek - Got a contract, somewhere
RASMUSSEN Alex - Back to Saxo?
RENSHAW Mark - Sky/Green Edge?
ROULSTON Hayden - Not sure
SIUTSOU Kanstantsin - Sky?
SMUKULIS Gatis - From AG2R right? Maybe a French team?
VAN GARDEREN Tejay - BMC?
VELITS Martin - Quick Step
VELITS Peter - Quick Step

 

[Midnightfright]

So where are they all going to end up?

ALBASINI Michael - Back to Phonak?
BAK Lars Ytting - Maybe Saxo or Leopard?
BRAMMEIER Matthew - No idea
CAVENDISH Mark - Sky?
DEGENKOLB John - Whoever can get him!
EISEL Bernhard - Sky?
FAIRLY Caleb - A US Pro Conti?
GHYSELINCK Jan - Lotto?
GOSS Matthew - Green Edge?
GRABSCH Bert - A TTT team like Garmin or The Shack?
GRETSCH Patrick - Skil-Shimano
HOWARD Leigh - Green Edge?
LEWIS Craig - US Pro Conti
MARTIN Tony - Anywhere
PATE Danny - US Pro Conti
PINOTTI Marco - Geox... Garmin?
RABON Frantisek - Got a contract, somewhere
RASMUSSEN Alex - Back to Saxo?
RENSHAW Mark - Sky/Green Edge?
ROULSTON Hayden - Not sure
SIUTSOU Kanstantsin - Sky?
SMUKULIS Gatis - From AG2R right? Maybe a French team?
VAN GARDEREN Tejay - BMC?
VELITS Martin - Quick Step
VELITS Peter - Quick Step

I suspect a couple of these guys may go to Skil, they seem to want to build behind Kittel what better team to snipe talent from.