The future of the men’s Tour of Britain is hanging by a thread after the governing body, British Cycling, terminated its agreement with SweetSpot, the race promoter, in what they claim is a financial dispute over unpaid rights fees.
The ending of British Cycling’s deal with SweetSpot means that, unless a new promoter can be found in the immediate future, the race is effectively cancelled and risks being removed from the 2024 programmes of the world’s leading riders and teams.
In a memo sent to all British Cycling staff, the governing body said: “We have taken the decision to terminate our agreement with immediate effect following the non-payment of agreed rights fees.” A statement issued later on Tuesday confirmed the news. British Cycling owns the rights to the Tour of Britain, and SweetSpot successfully tendered in 2019, securing a 10-year contract until 2029. The Guardian understands that British Cycling claims SweetSpot owes £700,000 in unpaid instalments, dating back to 2022. SweetSpot declined to comment on the amount involved or the exact nature of the dispute and said the matter was being discussed between the two legal teams.
“The agreed rights fee form a significant part of British Cycling’s earned income,” the memo, leaked to cyclingweekly.com stated, adding that “the current situation is untenable, with a clear financial impact on our organisation and our ability to invest in the growth of the sport.”
The memo added that British Cycling is now “progressing plans to ensure the successful delivery of the (men’s) Tour of Britain in 2024”.
However, speaking on Tuesday morning, Hugh Roberts, SweetSpot’s Tour of Britain CEO, asserted that the race organisers were pushing “full steam ahead” into event planning for 2024.
“We are in very positive talks, particularly regarding the Women’s Tour, with numerous stakeholders,” Roberts told the Guardian.
Both sides have put the dispute in the hands of lawyers, although no litigation has yet been actioned. “I am optimistic that the issues with British Cycling can be overcome,” Roberts said. “We have to resolve our differences.”
Both the men’s and women’s races have faced crises in funding in the past year. British Cycling does not own rights to the Women’s Tour (of Britain), but the 2023 race was cancelled due to “increased running costs and a reduced level of commercial support,” according to SweetSpot.
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The Tour Series of criterium races, another SweetSpot event, was also cancelled in 2023, with the promoter citing “wider economic challenges”.
Uncertainty also surrounded the men’s Tour of Britain, although the race did eventually run, but on a reduced scale and was also criticised for its flat route. wThe race’s director, Mick Bennett, responded to those critics of the quality of the race by saying: “They don’t understand the bigger picture we have to deal with.”
Sources within British Cycling also cited the pressure on the body’s own finances, after it became known in late October that declining membership and lower revenues had forced a bout of redundancies.
“I do not think it will come as a surprise to anybody to see that the global economic climate and cost-of-living crisis have made our work to attract new members and commercial investment incredibly challenging,” British Cycling CEO, Jon Dutton, said.
