Visma-Lease a Bike confirm Fabio Jakobsen joins team 'with immediate effect' after Picnic-PostNL departure

Less than two weeks after Picnic-PostNL announced that Fabio Jakobsen would be leaving the team with immediate effect, Visma-Lease a Bike have confirmed the Dutch sprinter's signing on a deal through 2027.

Jakobsen, 29, has 46 pro wins to his name, including a Tour de France stage, five stages of the Vuelta a España, two editions of Scheldeprijs, and the 2022 European road title. However, he's struggled with health issues in recent seasons, including double iliac artery surgery in early 2025.

Jakobsen's most recent victory came in the opening stage of the Tour of Turkey two years ago, and both he and Visma will hope he'll get back to winning ways in his new surroundings.

"I've raced against the team for several years now, and seeing everything they've achieved throughout the years and how consistently they perform at the highest level, It's a dream come true to wear these colours," Jakobsen said.

"My goal is to get back to the level where I can compete at the highest level again and sprint for victories. As a sprinter, you never win on your own, so being part of a strong team is essential. I believe this is one of the best performance environments in the world", he says.

"I believe we can learn from each other and continue to improve together. There's a lot of work ahead, but I'm confident this is the right environment to make progress."

This season, Jakobsen has toiled away on the lacklustre Picnic-PostNL team. The Dutch team have just a single win to their name at the Tour of Turkey, where Casper van Uden – switching to Alpecin-Premier Tech next year – sprinted to victory.

Picnic currently lie 29th in the UCI world rankings, last of all WorldTour teams and below 11 second division ProTeams, and look set to face a relegation battle over the coming seasons.

Jakobsen's Turkey stage win is his sole triumph during two-and-a-half years at the squad, while his top result in 2026 is 16th on a stage of the UAE Tour.

Visma-Lease a Bike head of performance explained that the team were "looking for a specialist for the flat sprints" and believe they've found one in Jakobsen. He hasn't raced since the Dutch National Championships in June, and Visma noted that the upcoming months will be focused on 'a gradual return to competition… centred on rebuilding his condition.'

"We had been looking for a specialist for the pure flat sprints. The more we looked into Fabio's situation, the more convinced we became that there is still a great deal of untapped potential," Heijboer said.

"We believe we can create the right environment to help him unlock it. At the same time, having Fabio join us now allows us to start working with Fabio straight away instead of waiting until next season."

Analysis

Dani Ostanek

Fabio Jakobsen was one of the better-known names at Picnic, who have gained a reputation for losing their top talent to richer squads over the years, but this isn't one of those moves.

He has struggled mightily for form since joining the team, with iliac artery problems causing him to lose sprint power.

He hasn't shown any signs of regaining his ability since then, however, with DNFs littering a palmarès that used to feature wins and podiums. Moving on is best for both parties.

It remains to be seen whether he can rediscover himself at Visma, the third team of his career after Picnic and his early, far more successful stint at Soudal-QuickStep. The terms of his contract are obviously private, but it's hard not to imagine that this will be a 'prove it' deal, possibly with results-based bonuses.

Visma committing a chunk of their budget to Jakobsen wouldn't make much sense right now, given their search for new money to bolster Jonas Vingegaard's support team. And, with the contract only running for just over a year, there's likely to be little risk on their side.

Instead, it appears to be a low-risk rehabilitation play. Visma have several fast finishers – including Matthew Brennan, Wout van Aert, and Christophe Laporte – but none are in the mould of a prime Jakobsen, who was fully at home on traditional flat sprint stages.

The team say they'll focus on 'rebuilding his condition, introducing him to the team’s training philosophy, nutrition programme and way of working, and helping him settle in.' If they can do that, and reach their 'ultimate goal of seeing him compete for sprint victories again', then it's all upside.

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