Ex-UCI president Brian Cookson has suggested that cycling’s governing body should introduce a new rule banning professional teams from featuring nation states in their names, in an attempt to quell the anti-Israel protests which marred this month’s Vuelta a España.
According to Cookson, a former president of British Cycling who served as UCI head between 2013 and 2017, a ban on nations serving as de-facto title sponsors would act as a “quick, partial, and undoubtedly imperfect” way of tackling the “existential threat” of protests at races.
The suggested rule change, if implemented, would affect WorldTour squads UAE Team Emirates and Bahrain-Victorious, as well as Israel-Premier Tech, the target of the pro-Palestine demonstrations at the Vuelta which saw activists run onto the road, roads blocked, clashes between police and protesters, and stages finishes abruptly cancelled, including on the final day in Madrid, where several mass protests spilled over into street violence.
Pro-Palestine protests in Madrid, 2025 Vuelta (credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
While anti-Israel protests have also taken place at this year’s Tour de France and Giro d’Italia, the scale, frequency, and chaos of the demonstrations at the Vuelta have raised doubts about Barcelona’s ability to host the Grand Départ of the 2026 Tour de France, especially if Israel-Premier Tech are present.
On Tuesday, AS reported that Barcelona City Council has confirmed that it has no plans to cancel next year’s Tour start, though the local authority has made it clear that the Catalan city aims to host the race without a team bearing Israel’s name or flag.
“We want the teams competing under the Israeli flag, in the same way as has happened with Russia, to stop competing under this flag,” sports councillor David Escudé said today.
This suggestion has been echoed by former UCI president Cookson, who told road.cc this week that a new rule concerning the relationship between nations states and cycling teams – as well as increased security at races – would be instrumental in preventing further protests in the short term.
“This specific situation regarding Israel and Palestine is obviously a huge geopolitical issue, with roots that go back many, many years, that can ultimately only be resolved at the governmental level,” Cookson, who preceded current UCI president David Lappartient, tells road.cc, reflecting on the protests at the Vuelta.
“Clearly public feeling around the world is very strong and its growth has outpaced the speed at which the governments of the most influential nations have seen fit to act.
“Leaving aside the specifics of the conflict, for right or wrong, when this happens, people understandably seek to express their dissatisfaction and disgust in whatever ways they can.
“And sporting events, especially bike races on public roads in largely open environments, are one of the easiest targets. As many have pointed out, this is not a new phenomenon as such. In fact, demonstrations and disruptions have often targeted bike races over the years.
“The difference here is perhaps mainly the scale of the disruptions. That and the strength of feeling, the moral outrage of the protesters, and the focus on one particular team’s sponsor, which thereby links inextricably to the whole event and all the other participants.
“To repeat, this cannot be resolved until the geopolitical situation is itself resolved. And that cannot happen until the world’s most influential governments use their power and influence to get it resolved.”
Brian Cookson at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle (credit: UCI)
According to Cookson, while they may have no say when it comes to Israel’s actions in Gaza, cycling’s stakeholders can act to ensure protests do not disrupt races or, as seen on a number of occasions at this year’s Vuelta, potentially put the peloton in danger.
“What can the world of cycling do to stop, or at least reduce, what could easily become an existential threat to our sport?” Cookson asks. “More barriers, more security, better crowd control – all these things can be addressed and improved, at a cost.
“As an aside, I’ve long felt that the behaviour of ‘fans’ has got out of hand in some parts of some races in recent years, irrespective of any political demonstrations or other deliberate disruptions. So let’s all take a look in the mirror and have a serious think about what is appropriate behaviour when exercising the privilege of appreciating our sport live at the roadside.
“The broader problem is that today there are lots of other reasons why people may wish to disrupt a bike race to make their point.
“For example, we already saw this at the World Championships in Scotland, when Just Stop Oil demonstrators glued themselves to the road in a protest against the prevalence of oil-related sponsors in the sport. So far, those kind of demonstrations have been relatively limited.”
Pro-Palestine protest, stage 16, 2025 Vuelta (credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
But, with Israel-Premier Tech’s role in the sport acting as the catalyst for the protests at the Vuelta, Cookson believes the role of nation states in the sport – such as four-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar’s UAE Team Emirates squad – should be re-examined.
Despite what its name and branding might suggest – especially in a sport where Bahrain and the UAE also serve as title sponsors – Israel-Premier Tech is not officially state-owned. Instead, it was founded by Canadian-Israeli billionaire Sylvan Adams, one of Canada’s biggest real estate investors, who emigrated to Israel in 2015.
Nevertheless, the squad has received some funding from Israel’s ministry for tourism and Adams – who attended Donald Trump’s inauguration, encouraged US attacks on Iran in June, and called on Israel to “finish the job” in Gaza – has described the team as “ambassadors” for Israel and a means of promoting a “more realistic vision” of modern Israel.
“To resolve this current issue, assuming the particular team sponsor concerned does not decide to withdraw, which seems unlikely, my only thought is that perhaps the UCI should consider a new rule,” Cookson tells road.cc.
“A rule that no professional team (outside of world championships or other representative events) may bear the name of a nation state as its principal title. This certainly doesn’t seem to happen in other pro sports, outside of World Cups, etc, when all the teams are national teams.
“For instance, in football the English Premier League certainly has teams that are owned by nation states or their sovereign wealth funds or similar, but they don’t have that nation’s name as their principal name in competition.
“There are only two other teams that currently do that [UAE Team Emirates and Bahrain-Victorious], so far as I can see, and clearly they would need to be persuaded that it was in the best interest of the sport for them to adopt a different approach.
“I have no idea whether they would or would not agree to that. That’s currently the only suggestion I would have for a relatively quick, partial, and undoubtedly imperfect, way of moving things forward.”
Israel-Premier Tech ride past Palestine flags, stage 11, 2025 Vuelta (credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
Cookson’s comments come after the UCI issued a statement criticising the Spanish government for “exploiting sport for political purposes” by backing the demonstrators’ protests against Israel-Premier Tech’s participation at the Vuelta.
Describing the protesters’ actions as “militant”, the governing body’s statement condemned the “unacceptable and counterproductive” stance taken by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who this week called for Israel to be banned from all sports events following Sunday’s cancelled Madrid stage, arguing that the nation should not be permitted to “whitewash” its “barbarism” in Gaza.
“We regret the fact that the Spanish Prime Minister and his government have supported actions that could hinder the smooth running of a sporting competition and, in some cases, expressed their admiration for the demonstrators,” the UCI said.
“This position is contradictory to the Olympic values of unity, mutual respect, and peace. It also calls into question Spain’s ability to host major international sporting events, ensuring that they take place in safe conditions and in accordance with the principles of the Olympic Charter.
“The UCI strongly condemns the exploitation of sport for political purposes in general, and especially coming from a government.”
The UCI’s position was today defended by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who claimed that Israel’s participation in sporting events “complies” with the Olympic Charter.
Pro-Palestine protests in Madrid, 2025 Vuelta (credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com)
However, the Spanish government has hit back at the UCI, arguing that using sport to “whitewash” Israel’s actions in Gaza is a political position contravening both the Olympic Charter and “the most basic values of sport”.
“With the deepest admiration and respect for our athletes and, as we have always done, expressing our rejection of any type of violent behaviour, we believe that sport cannot remain indifferent to what is happening in the world, much less remain oblivious to serious human rights violations,” the Consejo Superior de Deportes (CSD), the governing body for sport in Spain, said in a letter to UCI president David Lappartient.
“There is no peace without justice, and using sport to ‘whitewash’ a genocide like the one being committed in Gaza, with thousands of deaths, innocent children, and a famine already declared by the United Nations, is a political position that contravenes the Olympic Charter and the most basic values of sport.”
On Tuesday morning, the United Nations’ commission of inquiry confirmed that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza.
Reports have also emerged this week that some WorldTour teams may refuse to race alongside Israel-Premier Tech and boycott events following the tumultuous scenes at the Vuelta, the Guardian reporting that several squads were dismayed by IPT’s refusal to quit the Spanish grand tour.
Meanwhile, Soudal Quick-Step rider Louis Vervaeke told Sporza today that some members of Israel-Premier Tech’s Vuelta squad were looking to go home, and even asked other riders if there were any spots on their teams for the 2026 season.