Tour boss: "Unibet Rose rockets a French identity? They have more Dutch riders"

There is widespread consternation on social media over the Unibet Rose Rockets missing out on a wildcard for the Tour de France in favor of Caja Rural-Seguros RGA and TotalEnergies, but according to Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme, this is a decision he can mainly justify on sporting grounds.

"We applied the same principle as in previous years, meaning we looked at the ProTeams ranking at the end of 2025," Prudhomme explained to the news agency AFP. "Caja Rural was initially ranked 25th, but with the disappearance of Arkéa-B&B Hotels and the merger between the Lotto team and Intermarché-Wanty, they moved up to 23rd place."

The origins of the Spanish ProTeam were also significant for the Tour de France boss. The French race starts in early July with a team time trial in the Catalan capital, Barcelona. "Vuelta revelation Abel Balderstone, who finished thirteenth in the general classification, is not only Spanish but also Catalan," he noted.

The fact that the Rockets race under a French license makes little impression on Prudhomme. "They do not emphasize the French identity at all. They have more Dutch riders. It is true, however, that they have made a very strong recruitment with Wout Poels, Dylan Groenewegen, and Victor Lafay, three former stage winners in the Tour."

Therefore, Prudhomme does not rule them out for the future. "It is a team that dreams long-term of the Tour de France. We will review all this for the coming years.”