The team will be known as Soudal – Quick-Step from next season, after reaching a multi-year agreement.
Based in Turnhout, Belgium, the family-owned Soudal has been involved in cycling sponsorship for a number of years, on several different levels, and so bring with them an existing knowledge of the sport. They will join forces with Quick-Step, one of the most famous and enduring sponsors in the world of professional cycling, with the new team being named Soudal – Quick-Step.
Speaking of the announcement, Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team CEO Patrick Lefevere said: “We are delighted to welcome Soudal to the team. Their partnership with us allows some stability for the squad for several years. It allows us to work, together with Quick-Step, on some long-term projects and common goals that we are all aiming to achieve. Both of our title sponsors have been in cycling for several years now, so they understand how the sport works, which is really important when trying to build something together.”
This was added to by Dirk Coorevits, CEO of Soudal, who said: “A lot of the values we as a company stand for, we find back in cycling in general and this cycling team in particular, such as ambition, perseverance, strong Flemish roots and being a successful Belgian ‘export product’, being the reference in our sector, and strong leadership in combination with working with the best people on all positions. And of course, last but certainly not least: hard work. We are looking forward to seeing that hard work and our partnership with Patrick’s team bearing fruit in the coming years.”
The news was also welcomed by Ruben Desmet, the President of Unilin flooring (the company behind the Quick-Step brand): “We have been with the team for 20 years. Joining forces with Soudal marks a new chapter in that story. A story we want to continue with a long-term commitment. The team and Unilin, the company behind the Quick-Step brand, have pushed the boundaries together. Unilin has become an international industrial player, and the team, one of the best in the world. Now it’s time to grow further, invest in talented youth and be competitive on all fronts.”
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images
