The Illes Balears team will be looking for a new major sponsor and a new name again, having been dumped in favour of basketball. The regional government announced that it would withdraw its naming rights sponsorship of the cycling team and put its money in the Menorca basketball team, which will enable the team to financially qualify for the first league. The government will not totally abandon the cycling team, and will remain as a smaller sponsor, acknowledging that this is "bad news, but at this time is is necessary to make decisions."
It is speculated that current co-sponsor Caisse d'Epargne, a French financial institution, will take over as name sponsor, and is requesting the signing of as many French riders as possible. When Caisse d'Epargne came on board earlier this year, it was thought that the team would be called Illes Balears-Caisse d'Epargne until at least the end of 2006, but it appears that Illes Balears has decided to step back sooner, rather than later.
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