BMC says it will make a “long overdue” move into women’s professional road cycling, while announcing a greater presence in professional gravel cycling. It also says it will pull back from its investment in cross-country mountain biking.
The Swiss brand says, in a somewhat teasing press release, that professional women’s cycling “is on a march that won’t be stopped or slowed down”. “It’s exciting, it commands attention and it’s faster than ever before,” BMC says.
But it claims one thing needs “urgent ratification”: the lack of BMC bikes in the women’s peloton. “It's about time we saw BMC bikes in both the Men's and Women's Grand Tours,” the press release says.
BMC says it has taken steps to correct the situation, but it’s not revealing anything else about its move into women’s cycling at this time. We’ll have to wait for an official announcement, which it says will “follow soon”.
What BMC does say, however, is that this move into women’s pro cycling means it is closing its BMC Factory Racing cross-country mountain biking team. BMC says the team's athletes and staff have been aware of the closure since spring this year.
BMC’s head of sports marketing, Amaël Moinard, says running the factory team has been “an incredible journey”.
“We have been fortunate to work alongside world-class athletes and trusted partners whose commitment made this success possible,” Moinard says.
“This strategic shift in focus opens the door to new opportunities and collaborations for 2027, which we look forward to announcing in the coming weeks.”
BMC will continue to sponsor Bike Team Solothurn, a Swiss cross-country mountain bike team.
As well as moving into professional women’s cycling, BMC says it has strengthened its investment in “off-road athletes” with a new programme that includes gravel racing.
This is all part of what BMC calls a “shifted marketing focus” that “presents incredibly exciting opportunities for the brand”.
BMC will continue to sponsor Tudor Pro Cycling and the brand says the new focus will enable it to pay greater attention to the men’s team.
