Arkéa-B&B Hotels team manager Emmanuel Hubert confirmed in June that his two title sponsors would no longer be on board in 2026, fuelling a frenzied search for new backers amid what they warned was a 'challenging cycling context for cycling'.
Three months later, the future of the 20-year-old French squad is still hanging in the balance, with the situation more and more dire as key deadlines for the year ahead loom.
"I have never given up. Never," Hubert told Le Parisien this week. "But I have a duty to be clear-headed: it is clear that we are very far from being on the right path when we look at the calendar."
The existing sponsorships may run to the end of the year but the steps along the way for the men's WorldTeam and Women's ProTeam need to be well in place before then.
The first hurdle comes on September 15, when the team needs to begin the 2026 WorldTour and team registration process. The first step is a commitment of at least €80,000.
With no new sponsors confirmed, Hubert is going to pay the fees out of his own pocket as that's "what it means to be a boss who fights and sees things through".
"And on October 1, you have to submit a bank guarantee," Hubert said in Le Parisien interview.
"Then the axe will fall. If I don't have at least a firm letter of commitment, it will be over."
The lack of certainty isn't going to help the squad hold onto its best riders, with all given permission to leave given the situation.
Raúl García Pierna has just announced a deal with Movistar, Luca Mozzato is heading to Tudor Pro Cycling, Martin Tjøtta is on his way to Uno-X Mobility while Jenthe Biermans is on his way to Cofidis.
A number of key riders across the men's and women's teams that are yet to announce their plans for 2026.
In the men's squad this includes French sprinter Arnaud Démare and the rising Kévin Vauquelin, who has been out injured since the Tour de France but has still picked up five wins for the team this season regardless. In the women's team there is Omloop Het Nieuwsblad winner Lotte Claes, Dutch rider Marjolein van 't Geloof, Austrian Valentina Cavallar and experienced Swedish rider Emilia Fahlin.
Hubert said he started with about fifteen potential options to replace the lost sponsors and keep the Breton team alive but they had dwindled one after another.
"I have one shot left. Just one," said Hubert. "I hope it's the right one. I want to believe it."
