TotalEnergies future still hangs in the balance as initial teams registration deadline of October 15 looms

The October 15 deadline for teams to make their registration for the 2027 season is approaching fast, but longstanding French ProTeam squad TotalEnergies have yet to issue a definitive statement about the viability of their future for next year.

The lack of recent updates means the uncertainty surrounding the future of TotalEnergies, formed back in 2000 as the Bonjour squad but seemingly still on the hunt for new financial backers for 2027, is set to continue, at least in the short term

According to RMC Sport, although team bosses Stéphane Heulot and Jean-René Bernaudeau have said over the last few months that they remain confident and are working on finding a sponsor, more than a third of the current 28-rider lineup have either signed elsewhere or announced they will be retiring.

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Amongst those higher-profile riders leaving are Jordan Jegat, tenth overall in the Tour de France in 2025 and 2026, who is heading to Lidl-Trek, whilst TotalEnergies teammate Geoffrey Bouchard, a former mountains classification winner in both the Vuelta a España and the Giro d’Italia, is ending his career.

RMC Sport also report that no statement updating the team’s future is planned before Thursday’s initial registration deadline. After October 15, teams can still register, but only if they pay a daily financial penalty and prove a percentage of riders are under contract for the following season.

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There are also rumours that in 2027 TotalEnergies may revert to Continental status in a new iteration of Vendée U, its current feeder team, according to RMC Sport.

TotalEnergies are far from being the only leading men’s Proteam either with a large question mark looming over their future or already definitively ending after this year.

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In Belgium, longstanding squad Flanders-Baloise are due to fold at the end of the year, whilst in Spain, Kern Pharma are still fighting a last-ditch battle for a title sponsor for 2027. Since 2022, France itself has already seen two major teams, B&B Hotels-KTM and Arkéa-B&B Hotels, quit the pro scene.