UCI Men's Road Continental Teams

Bend Memorial Clinic Cascade Cycling Classic.
Photo: Matthew Lasala, LasalaImages.com

This information has been updated for the 2018 season.

Welcome to the homepage for the 2018 UCI Men's Road Continental Teams. On here you will find all of the information we have on the logistics of forming, registering, and maintaining a UCI Continental Team. In case you have navigated here by accident, this information is specific to what the UCI has defined as a UCI Continental Team.

Until 2005, this would have been called a UCI Division (or Tier) III Trade Team. These teams make up the bulk of our international teams. The other names you will hear are UCI Professional Continental Team (ex Tier II) and UCI Pro Team (ex Tier I). These latter two types of teams are managed directly by the UCI and the material here is not generally applicable to them. 

If you ever need assistance with any aspect of your team process, please do not hesitate to contact Justin Evans. One of the benefits of being on a UCI continental team is that you have a dedicated USA Cycling staff contact. I can be reached at: Jevans@usacycling.org. You can call me at my direct work number, 719-434-4263.

List of current UCI Men's Road Continental Teams
 

Table of Contents

1. Team Composition and General Principles
2. Team Participation
3. Contracts
4. Insurance
5. Medical Monitoring
6. Roster Changes
7. Clothing and Equipment
8. Key Dates for Team Registration
9. Associated Fees for Registering a Team
10. The Bank Guarantee
11. The Registration and Auditing Process

1. Team Composition and General Principles

A UCI Continental Team is made up of a minimum of 8 riders and a maximum of 16 riders. To be registered with USA Cycling, the majority of your riders must have US citizenship (i.e. a UCI code that starts with USA). All riders on the team must have a road category 1 license. If you have foreign riders on your team that are licensed by another federation, they must have their federation’s equivalent of a category 1. Please note that we do not upgrade cat 2 and cat 3 riders to cat 1 simply because they "need" to be upgraded because you want them on your teams. Please choose your riders accordingly.

The table below illustrates how the number of USA riders on your team determines the nationality:

In this example, the US is the most represented country, making the nationality of the team USA.

In addition to the 16-rider maximum, a team may have a maximum of four extra riders who are specialists in other endurance disciplines, such as track (scratch, points race, pursuit), mountain bike (cross-country), or cyclo-cross, provided that these riders were in the top 150 of the last final UCI Individual classification.

Between August 1st and the end of the year, the team can also add two riders in the U23 class as "trainees", provided these riders have not previously ridden for a UCI road team and that the UCI is notified before August 1st. Lastly, you can add a rider at any time during the season if that rider has not been on any UCI team in the current season.

The United States can register a maximum of 15 continental teams with the UCI.

2. Team Participation

Once a rider is on your team, he can ride in two kinds of races: UCI races anywhere in the world or national races in the United States. Riders on continental teams do not need Foreign Permission Letters to ride abroad.

The UCI rules are very specific. For men's teams, there are no mixed teams allowed in UCI races at the elite level. The race director/organizer cannot give an exception to this. USA Cycling cannot give an exception to this. Therefore your riders can only ride an UCI race in two ways: as a regular member of your team or as a member of a USA Cycling national team when it is participating as such in the race. The latter is only allowed if your continental team is not riding the race. If you have foreign riders on your team, they would be subject to the same rule. For example, if you have a Mexican rider on your team, he may ride an international race as part of the Mexican national team, but only if your continental team is not participating.

It is important to remember that being on a UCI continental does not mean you are automatically selected for any particular race. Each UCI event is by invitation only. A UCI race organizer must meet UCI rules when extending invitations to their events, and since these rules include a minimum number of non-American teams, there may not be enough space in certain races for each American team. Depending on the level of race and the location, the organizer will be choosing between UCI World Teams, UCI Professional Continental Teams, UCI Continental Teams, National Teams, and regional/club teams. Each team must contact the race organizer to secure an invitation. The UCI has specific rules regarding invitations. For example, for men's elite races with a x.1 and x.2 designation in the Americas, race directors must invite the top three continental teams in the UCI continental circuits rankings.

3. Contracts

Each rider must have a contract for a fixed period that expires on December 31. The contracts must meet the minimum standards given in the model contracts for Remunerated riders and Non-Professional riders (Updating contracts with our legal deparment). This contract must be spelled out explicitly wages (if any) and/or repayment of expenses. Note that wages are not required for UCI Continental Teams. In addition, if a rider is to be paid a salary per the contract, the only method of payment allowed is direct deposit into the rider's bank account, the specifics of which must also be included in the contract.

Please note that no provision in the contract is valid if it goes against the basic nature of the year-long contract unless it is in the rider's favor. In other words, you cannot include a provision in the contract that says, "the team may terminate this contract at its discretion for any reason" or "the team may terminate this contract at its discretion of the rider fails to perform up to team standards" or such language. Such a contract would essentially mean there is no contract at all.

Your team may be based in a state known for "at will employment", but a UCI continental team is not an "at will" employer. If you hire a rider, presume it is for the whole year. Our auditor will be carefully checking contracts to make sure they meet the minimum standards and do not contain any "out clauses" that effectively invalidate the nature of a contract. The contracts must even have a statement in them that acknowledges that any statement that differs from the model contract is null and void unless it is in the favor of the rider.

4. Insurance

Part of the registration process will be for the teams to prove that each rider on their team has adequate medical insurance that covers sickness, accidents, and repatriation. The UCI rules also specify civil liability, but a USA Cycling license carries that coverage automatically, and is not required by the team. As a team you may purchase health insurance for your riders or require them to purchase it. Either way, it will be up to the team to document that such insurance exists. The UCI has provided a form (UCI annex D.1) to track their insurance, which must be submitted to the auditor with the packets.

5. Medical Monitoring

In 2015, the UCI introduced a new set of regulations regarding medical rules and the Medical Monitoring program. At this point in time, the Medical Monitoring program is NOT required for UCI Men's Road Continental Teams. As a UCI team, however, you should be aware of the program and of the medical rules under which the UCI operates. The regulations regarding Medical Rules may be found in the Part XIII: Medical Rules section of the UCI regulations.

2013 Volkswagen USA Cycling Pro Road & TT Nationals.
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

6. Roster Changes

The UCI has imposed strict limits on how and when team rosters can be changed. Under normal circumstances, roster changes may be made given the following criteria:

• At any time during the season, you can add a rider if that rider meets all criteria and has not had a contract with a UCI team in 2018. To add a rider, please complete and submit the roster change form (UCI annex G1) to USA Cycling for processing. You must also submit the same information (contract and insurance) to our auditor along with a check for $150.
• Between August 1, 2018 and the end of the year, you can add two U23 riders to your roster as "trainees". Note that USA Cycling must submit those names to the UCI BEFORE July 28th. These U23 riders cannot have been on another UCI team in the past. To add a U23 rider as a trainee/stagiaire, please complete and submit the trainee form (UCI annex G2) to USA Cycling for processing.

In addition to the roster change methods outline above, the UCI has established a Rider Transfer Period, which runs from June 1, 2018 through June 25, 2018. During this transfer period, riders who have been on a UCI team in the current year may transfer to a different UCI team. As part of this transfer process, the rider and their original team must have previously submitted to USA Cycling a mutually-agreed upon termination agreement and a roster change form (UCI annex G1) for removing the rider from the UCI roster. With this in place, the rider may be added to your team's roster using the same roster change form (UCI annex G1) as outlined above, along with submitting the appropriate documentation and payment to our auditor.
 

7. Clothing and Equipment

8. Key Dates for Team Registration

OCTOBER 1, 2017 — This is the FINAL DATE applications will be accepted by USA Cycling and our auditor, Waugh & Goodwin LLP. Applications received after this date will not be processed and will not be submitted to the UCI. Auditing Fees are due on this date. Mail packets to Waugh & Goodwin, LLP, 1365 Garden of the Gods Road, Suite 150, Colorado Springs, CO 80907.

OCTOBER 31, 2017 — USA Cycling must submit the list of teams that it intends to register to the UCI. This means that at a minimum, we need to know the name of the team. If we submit a team called Billy Joe’s Bike Shop/Raleigh to the UCI by this date, we may be able to register a team by November 10 that is called Billy Joe’s Bike Shop/Della Santa. However, if no part of the team name is the same, it may be rejected by the UCI. Therefore you would be well advised to have your primary sponsor lined up before you commit to this process. USA Cycling may submit registration packets to the UCI anytime after this date, assuming your packet is complete and your audit has been finished. Please also note that as a UCI continental team, you may have a maximum of two names in your title, which would be your two primary sponsors. You also cannot have the word "professional" in it.

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 — You must wire the UCI fee to the UCI bank by this date.

NOVEMBER 10, 2017 — USA Cycling must submit all completed continental team registration paperwork to the UCI on this date. All other fees to USA Cycling are due on this date.

JANUARY, 2018 — Publication of UCI Continental Teams on the UCI website.

JANUARY 14, 2018 — Provisional rankings of UCI Continental Teams on the UCI website, according to article 2.1.007bis.

MARCH 31, 2018 — Bank guarantees from the 2017 season due back to teams will be mailed by USA Cycling on this date.

JUNE 1-25, 2018— All 2017 UCI rider transfers will take place during this period.

July 25, 2018 — Addition of U23 riders to roster must be submitted by USA Cycling to the UCI by this date.

9. Associated Fees for Registering a Team

The following tables show the fees involved in this process, who they go to, when they are payable, and how they should be sent:

UCI Continental Teams

10. The Bank Guarantee

The UCI has again set the minimum bank guarantee as 20,000 euros or 15 percent of the salary package for the riders and staff, whichever is higher. We have set up a bank in Colorado Springs that will manage the bank guarantees and processes. You will provide USA Cycling with a check for the appropriate amount and it will be deposited in an account dedicated to your team. The bank guarantee should be satisfied by certified check.

The teams will also fill out and sign a bank guarantee agreement with USA Cycling that explains the nature of the bank guarantee and claims process.

If you wish to use your 2017 bank guarantee on file with USA Cycling toward your 2018 team, you may do so after paying all fines due the UCI and USA Cycling from 2017 or previous seasons. If the bank guarantee on file with USA Cycling is less than the amount due for 2018, the team will then make up the difference. If your rider salaries have decreased and your guarantee on file is more than what you need this year, and there are no challenges, then the difference will be refunded if you so request, on or after March 31st, 2018.

11. The Registration and Auditing Process

The following are the proper steps for registering a UCI continental team:

1. Familiarize yourself with the UCI regulations regarding continental teams. Your existence as a team is based on these rules, which can be found in their entirety on the UCI website. The most relevant chapters are Part I: General organization of cycling as a sport, Part II: Road Races, Part XII: Discipline and Procedures, and Part XIV: Anti-Doping Rules.

2. Compile the following for mailing to Waugh & Goodwin, LLP (auditor) by certified mail (must be received by October 1, 2017):

• Two copies of all signed rider/team staff contracts. If you have never done one of these before, the UCI has provided us with a model contract you can use as a guide depending on whether it is a remunerated member or a non-professional member.
• Completed official UCI registration forms. (UCI annex G)
• Complete rider and staff roster and proof on health insurance for all of your riders, including the following forms: rider list (UCI annex D.1), rider insurance (UCI annex D-1) and team staff (UCI annex D.2).
• Certified check for $850 to cover auditing services
• Copies of signed sponsor contracts over $5,000
• A complete team operating budget (UCI annex C). For your convenience, the UCI also has provided a set of instructions for developing a budget. Please use the original UCI form.
• Auditor Check list

3. Email the following electronic documents to Justin Evans at USA Cycling (Jevans@usacycling.org):

• Completed UCI Checklist of Documents (UCI annex B)
• Completed UCI Registration Forms (UCI annex G)
• Completed Rosters With Insurance Forms: Rider List (UCI annex D.1), Rider Insurance (UCI annex D-1) and Team Staff (UCI annex D.2)
• Team Representation Letter to USA Cycling (UCI annex E)
• Clothing designs for jerserys and shorts (in vectorized Adobe Illustrator or PDF format)
• List of Equipment (UCI annex L) - this should be submitted once the equipment is known and is not required at the time of registration

4. Wire the registration and CADF fees to the UCI into their euro bank account by the UCI deadline (November 1, 2017):

Bank: UBS Deutschland AG
Address: Bockenheimer Landstr. 2-4
              60306 Frankfurt am Main
              Germany
IBAN : DE27 5022 0085 1020 400012
BIC : SMHBDEFFXXX
Beneficiary: Union Cycliste Internationale
                  CH- 1860 Aigle

Note that the wire to the UCI is about 10 days before we have to have the packets to them, so plan accordingly.

Upon completion of the bank wire transfer to the UCI, please provide USA Cycling with the confirmation/tracking information. This will greatly help us in confirming receipt by the UCI, and will ease the registration process.

5. Waugh & Goodwin, LLP will provide you with a total amount due to cover your bank guarantee. Mail a check for that amount made out to the name of the entity responsible for your bank guarantee (team name or management company name) to the attention of Justin Evans by certified mail (Must be received by November 10, 2017). At the same time, mail a check to USA Cycling for the $5000 registration and RaceClean fee.

6. Access USA Cycling's membership website to renew or purchase a 2018 Professional road license. For issues, contact Justin Evans. UCI regulations state that riders shall obtain a license from the country of their main residence at the time of application. Please make sure that appropriate insurance is available with any foreign licenses. 

7. Waugh continues to review the documents and once they meet all the UCI regulations, they’ll send an auditors report to USA Cycling and notify you.

8. If the bank guarantee is in order when the auditors report arrives, USA Cycling will notify the UCI of your team’s successful completion of the registration process, and we will submit all paperwork to the UCI.

9. When the UCI lists your team on their official roster on the UCI website, the process is complete.

10. When the team is listed on the UCI roster, USA Cycling will process the rider and support staff licenses. Unless you request otherwise, all copies will be mailed directly to the team director.

11. If you make roster changes, the new rider contracts and $150 per rider added must be sent to Waugh and Associates, and the UCI change form (UCI annex G1) must be submitted to USA Cycling.