Arkéa-B&B Hotels in battle to survive for 2026 as both title sponsors pull out

French men's WorldTour team Arkéa-B&B Hotels and its women's ProTeam counterpart Arkéa-B&B Hotels face an existential threat after both title sponsors confirmed that they would be pulling out of sponsorship at the end of the current season.

The team announced the news in a press release on Wednesday morning, confirming longstanding rumours that both bank/insurance group Crédit Mutuel Arkéa and hotel chain B&B Hotels would be withdrawing their title sponsorships.

"The Arkéa-B&B Hotels team has been informed by its two title partners of the non-renewal of their respective contracts, which expire at the end of the season on 31 December 2025," the team announced in the press release.

"In a challenging financial climate for cycling, Emmanuel Hubert and his teams are fully committed to an active search for new partners."

The men's team is one of four French teams racing in the WorldTour in 2025, but have struggled for results since joining cycling's top division back in 2022. They're currently locked in a battle to try and retain their WorldTour licence for 2026.

Per the current three-year UCI points rankings, they're destined for relegation with their 20,455-point haul lying 3,107.83 points off the final 'safe' spot of 18th in the world. The women's team is currently ranked 17th in the world.

General manager Emmanuel Hubert, who has run the team since 2014, said that he remains "constructive and optimistic" in his search for new sponsorship.

"I would like to thank Arkéa and B&B Hotels for standing by us. A decade for Arkéa, which has enabled us to write some great chapters together, while B&B Hotels has given us the opportunity to change dimension from 2024 onwards," he said.

"Arkéa and B&B Hotels have been wonderful partners who have enabled us to achieve great things in our sport, at the highest level. We've brought a lot of joy to our Breton supporters, but not only that, as our team has a strong presence in France and internationally, as was the case again during the recent Tour de Suisse.

"Remaining constructive and optimistic, I'm working hard to secure the team's future. That's my objective at all times. I know that nothing can be taken for granted, but I want to believe in it. I remain confident in our project and will continue to promote it to potential new partners who will be able to identify with our ambition and values."

Speaking to Ouest-France, Hubert said he has "some very serious" leads for future sponsorship, adding that he's aiming for between €20-30 million in sponsorship money to keep the team going.

"The adventure can't end like this. I'm confident, because I have some very serious leads," he said. "I'm not a dream seller, because as long as there's no signature at the bottom of a contract, it's not a done deal. I'm optimistic.

"Finding between €20 and 30 million isn't easy. I want us to maintain our Breton identity. I dream of a consortium with different companies.

"If nothing is finalised after the Tour de France, it will be really difficult to believe in it afterwards," Hubert admitted.

"It's hard to live with on a daily basis. The nights are short, and I'm not home much. I've calculated that in the 19 years I've been doing this job, I've raised a total of €210 million, which is no small amount. So I believe in it. I have to succeed."

This season, the men's Arkéa-B&B Hotels have picked up eight victories, all coming on French soil and none in WorldTour events. Rising star Kévin Vauquelin is the team's top rider, having picked up GC wins at the Etoile de Bessèges and Région Pays de la Loire Tour as well as taking second places at La Flèche Wallonne and the Tour de Suisse.

He's responsible for five of the team's wins this season and is their only rider in the top 100 of the 2025 UCI rankings, currently lying in 31st on 1,892 points. Victor Guernalec, Cristián Rodríguez, and Raúl García Pierna have all picked up a win apiece in 2025.

The team also counts on well-known names such as Arnaud Démare, Florian Sénéchal, and Luca Mozzato. However, the group has struggled for success this year, with Démare's second-place finish on the opening day of Paris-Nice the best result from the trio.

The women's team includes riders Emilia Fahlin, Marjorie van 't Geloof and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad winner Lotte Claes. The team has taken two wins in 2025, including the Alpes Gresivaudan Classic.

Arkéa-B&B Hotels men's squad has been a WorldTour team for the past three seasons, having gradually built up from its beginnings as Continental team Bretagne-Jean Floc'h in 2005.

Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, via its subsidiary Fortuneo, came on board as title sponsor in 2016, with Arkéa taking over three years later, while B&B Hotels joined in 2024, two years after the collapse of the ProTeam the company had previously sponsored. The women's team started in 2020, sponsored by Arkéa before B&B Hotels came on board.