{"id":381746,"date":"2026-01-01T16:04:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T16:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/381746\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T16:04:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-01T16:04:10","slug":"new-sponsor-same-pink-assos-steps-in-as-ef-pro-cyclings-new-apparel-partner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/381746\/","title":{"rendered":"New sponsor, same pink: Assos steps in as EF Pro Cycling\u2019s new apparel partner"},"content":{"rendered":"

At the end of 2025, Rapha and the WorldTour teams EF Education\u2013EasyPost and EF Education\u2013Oatly announced they were ending their seven-year relationship<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sponsorships come and go, but in modern cycling, few apparel-team partnerships have been as iconic, or as instantly recognisable, as Rapha and the EF programme. Not just the trademark pink kits, but the Grand Tour changeout kits<\/a> over the years: the boundary-pushing, culture-crossing collaboration with skate brand Palace in 2019<\/a>, the colour-blocked \u201cexcess\u201d kits<\/a> or even the 2025 Giro switch-out that stood out because of its audacious whiteness. Each iteration distinct and highly collectable<\/a>, with many drops selling out soon after launching.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Yet despite the creative success and cultural cachet, Rapha ultimately chose to step back from its WorldTour commitments in an effort to stem ongoing financial losses<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Today, Assos of Switzerland announced it will take over from Rapha as the official technical apparel partner of EF Pro Cycling in a multi-year agreement spanning the men\u2019s, women\u2019s and development teams.<\/p>\n

Assos says the partnership brings together two brands “united by curiosity, performance, and individuality,” highlighting a shared belief that the future of cycling is “built by those prepared to challenge convention.”<\/p>\n

“This partnership with EF Pro Cycling represents an alignment of values,” said Assos CEO Edwin Navez. “EF Pro Cycling is known for pushing boundaries\u2014both in performance and in culture\u2014and that mirrors Assos’ own pursuit of innovation. Together, we will challenge convention, test limits, and create apparel that delivers real advantages in the most demanding race environments.”<\/p>\n

For EF Pro Cycling founder and CEO Jonathan Vaughters<\/a>, the move is more than a change of logo on the jersey; it\u2019s a full-circle moment.<\/p>\n

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“Assos has a long history of setting the standard for innovation in cycling. They\u2019ve been pushing boundaries since before many of our riders were born,” he said. “My first pair of bibs were Assos, and they were a revelation. Decades later, they\u2019re still leading the way, producing the most technically advanced clothing in the peloton, and our riders can feel that every time they suit up. This partnership is rooted in creating the fastest and best-looking kit in cycling. We\u2019re excited to keep pushing boundaries together.”<\/p>\n

Assos says the 2026 kit reflects a “forward-looking mindset” with a “bold colour palette” that evolves EF Pro Cycling\u2019s unmistakable visual identity while introducing “a new, almost other-worldly energy to the peloton.”<\/p>\n

Whether the new kit lives up to that promise\u2026.and I\u2019ll leave that to you. The first glimpses are below. Come May, though, I\u2019m especially curious to see what Assos comes up with for the Giro changeout kit. I somehow doubt another Palace collaboration is in the works. Rapha sure set the bar high; now let\u2019s see if Assos can meet it.<\/p>\n

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\"The(Image credit: \u00a0Jered Gruber & Ashley Gruber | Gruber Images.)\"The(Image credit: \u00a0Jered Gruber & Ashley Gruber | Gruber Images.)\"The(Image credit: \u00a0Jered Gruber & Ashley Gruber | Gruber Images.)\"The(Image credit: \u00a0Jered Gruber & Ashley Gruber | Gruber Images.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At the end of 2025, Rapha and the WorldTour teams EF Education\u2013EasyPost and EF Education\u2013Oatly announced they were…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":381747,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-381746","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381746"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381746\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/381747"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}