The upcoming merger between Lotto and Intermarché-Wanty is causing unrest within the team structure. Several permanent staff members of Lotto were unexpectedly informed last Friday that they will not be moving to the merged team and are being laid off. This was reported by Het Nieuwsblad.
Notably, according to the Flemish newspaper, Jannie Haek, CEO of the National Lottery, had earlier explicitly promised that the staff need not worry about their jobs. Unlike Intermarché-Wanty, Lotto mainly worked with permanent contracts. These were initially supposed to be carried over into the new project.
However, this now appears not to be the case. Among others, chief doctor Milan Holvoet, soigneur Vincent Monserez, and mechanics Nick Mondelaers and Jeanick Verstraete have had to leave. They have been part of the Lotto organization for many years. Recently, Stéphane Heulot was also let go. The daily management is expected to be taken over by Jean-François Bourlart, currently CEO of Intermarché-Wanty.
During the recent Tour de France, the news broke that Lotto (currently a ProTeam) and Intermarché-Wanty (currently a WorldTeam) intend to continue together from 2026 onwards. Both teams face financial difficulties which can be resolved through collaboration.
