Sportswear brand Nike will provide the Visma-Lease a Bike team with lifestyle apparel starting from the Tour de France, with WielerFlits revealing their involvement after spotting the Nike Swoosh logo on a team car at the Netherlands national championships.
Visma-Lease a Bike are expected to confirm the Nike deal in the next few days and the new non-race clothing will be on show at the Tour de France Grand Départ next week and then at the Tour de France Femmes. The team already has a deal with Hoka for lifestyle footware.
The American brand already sponsors Demi Vollering and her FDJ-Suez team, with the riders wearing Nike trainers and apparel when not racing.
WielerFlits suggests Nike's deal with Visma-Lease a Bike is a "first new big step" for Nike in cycling, with the deal possibly growing in the years to come.
Visma-Lease a Bike have been innovative with their clothing in recent years. They now create and sell their own race clothing after failing to find a satisfactory deal with traditional clothing brands. They have again changed the design of their jersey for the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes and sell their clothing via their website.
Nike has tried to enter the cycling market several times but has failed to capitalise on the interest for the sport, especially in Europe. Nike sponsored the Tour de France yellow jerseys between 1996 and 2011 and Lance Armstrong when he was a dominant presence in the sport.
Nike produced the yellow Livestrong wristbands that helped raise funds for Amstrong's Livestrong charity but then abruptly ended their links to the disgraced Texan when he admitted to doping through most of his career.
Mark Cavendish had a personal shoe sponsorship with Nike during much of his career but Nike never committed to producing a shoe range after the Armstrong years.
Visma-Lease a Bike are one the sport's super teams and have a budget close to €50 million. They have already secured new sponsorship this year from Rabobank and Skil, with both brands appearing on the new jersey for the Tour de France.
Visma-Lease a Bike announced their team for the 2025 Tour de France on Tuesday, with a powerful line-up ready to support Jonas Vingegaard as he takes on Tadej Pogačar and tries to win the race for a third time.
The eight-rider roster also includes Giro d’Italia winner Simon Yates and 2023 Vuelta a España winner Sepp Kuss. American Matteo Jorgenson will be a key cog in the support team for Vingegaard, with nine-time Tour stage winner Wout van Aert given the freedom to target stages while riding for Vingegaard. Tiesj Benoot, Victor Campenaerts and Edoardo Affini complete the team, providing key support and protection on the flatter stages.
