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[PT] Aker - AB InBev 2026 | Availability
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| ember |
Posted on 04-07-2026 21:43
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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The team known for many, many years as Aker - MOT, mixes it up for the 2026 season.
We're very happy and proud to announce AB InBev, Anheuser-Busch InBev, as our new main sponsor, together with Aker, whom has been with us since the very start back in 2012, says team manager ember.
AB InBev is within the MG universe seen as a surprise sponsor for the Norwegian team. Team manager ember is visibly proud to have the Belgian company is the largest brewer in the world, holding a global market share of almost 30 percent.
Their headquarter is in Leuven in Belgium. The city is also the municipality of the Flemish Brabant, Vlaams-Brabant, region.
What is not to like? I'm thrilled to have them join and believe in our project. After being formerly known as a first and foremost Norwegian team, we have been looking for an international sponsor for years to try to give ourselves a new team identity and a new project to build. With Aker and AB InBev as our main sponsors, we have an amazing base to build on, and it will be no secret we will try to build a stronger Belgium and Benelux base in our team. Admittedly, AB InBev are also excited to see De Lie in the team, as one of the most exciting talents for the future. It goes without saying we will try our best to make him one of the world's best riders in the future, says team manager ember.
It goes without saying the team will be presented in a new jersey when the time is right. Having the brilliant jersey maker Jakstar doing the work, the team's headquarter is very excited to see the final jersey when it's ready.
Main sponsors
 Aker
 AB InBev
Minor sponsors
 Bianchi
Castelli
Campagnolo
Edited by ember on 10-07-2026 22:59
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| ember |
Posted on 04-07-2026 21:43
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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Reserved |
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 04-07-2026 23:53
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 16873
Joined: 27-07-2011
PCM$: 16038.70
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A shake up to the Scandinavian identity? 
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| kandesbunzler26 |
Posted on 05-07-2026 06:06
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2297
Joined: 07-07-2013
PCM$: 400.00
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At least another addition to the trend of breweries entering the scene.
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 05-07-2026 07:45
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 13113
Joined: 27-07-2015
PCM$: 1961.50
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Very interesting expansion in terms of focus region for a team synonymous with Scandinavia for many years,. Interested to see how this goes 
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| Booker |
Posted on 05-07-2026 17:43
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1155
Joined: 03-07-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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More competition not only in brewing superiority but also in Belgium?! 
It's like our Romo / Faglum Karlsson swap meant nothing to you!
No but seriously, I'd probably do the same with an absolute beast like De Lie coming through the youth system, so I'm sure we'll be coming across each other in transfers
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| Heine |
Posted on 05-07-2026 18:22
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4845
Joined: 08-04-2007
PCM$: 200.00
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I think someone said it last year, but we gotta have the drunkest peloton ever 
Waiting to see how the Belgian contigent will look around De Lie!
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| ember |
Posted on 05-07-2026 19:26
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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bbl: Absolutely! Admittedly we have been light on Scandinavians and especially Norwegians the last couple of years. Hoping this can be a way to get myself more invested into a team identity again, similar to what it always was before.
kb: Yeah, must admit I didn’t do too much research on what company we should bring in, with the most important thing being to find something from Belgium
Abhi and Heine: Very curious to see how it goes as well. Excited to, as it makes for clearer targets early in transfers  Just hoping I can land both Belgians and riders from Benelux, or at the very least countries next to them.
Booker: I am sorry! Hopefully this gives the whole peloton across all divisions the best drinks possible Landing De Lie a couple of years ago was indeed a key for a new focus for our team. Would be brilliant if he can become the rider we hope and will build for in years to come. |
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 12-07-2026 19:37
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Bot Agent
Posts: Countless
Joined: 23.11.09
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| Heine |
Posted on 05-07-2026 23:34
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4845
Joined: 08-04-2007
PCM$: 200.00
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BeNe isnokay, Lux not so
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| ember |
Posted on 06-07-2026 17:58
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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Haha, I am sure the MGUCI finds the perfect amount of talents and quality riders from the massive cycling nation Luxembourg to serve everyone, both Luxembourg teams and other teams looking to them |
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| whitejersey |
Posted on 06-07-2026 20:19
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3371
Joined: 07-08-2011
PCM$: 300.00
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Checks notes, first bid is 100k for De Lie
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| ember |
Posted on 07-07-2026 06:14
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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Hoping those notes have a lot more content to make your transfer season enjoyable |
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| ember |
Posted on 07-07-2026 06:41
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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National championships have been very kind to us this season, and we're excited to say we have several riders wearing their national champion jerseys in 2026, assuming they stay in the team.
We started of with a massive win in Belgium, were Arnaud De Lie gave the cycling world a teaser on the rider we dream of him becoming, winning the road race only 23 years old. Beating well established pros like Vermeersch and Van Lerberghe to earn the right to wear the Driekleur trikot for a full year, is very cool.
Speaking of big national championships, we must say it came as a very pleasant surprise to see JP Lopez proving the strongest on a mountainous course in Spain. It was in actual fact a brilliant team effort that was rewarded with the jersey, as Rodriguez, Canal and Romo worked all day for JP Lopez, with Rodriguez doing a massive pull in the final kilometers, to launch JP with 3 kilometers to go. It was between him, Aranburu and Roson, and they couldn't resist JP Lopez' sprint to the line, claiming the title, 8 seconds ahead of Vuelta star Aranburu.
We had another three national titles coming our way, thanks to splendid sprints by Groenewegen in Netherlands and Prasad in Sri Lanka, while Nuha did what everyone expected him to do in Kosovo.
Groenewegen's sprint was a big show of strength, as he really left no doubts on the road, gapping the others and winning with a huge margin to 2nd place Van Poppel and 3rd place Kooij in the sprint. Pre race he was the clear favourite, but having him race as a sole rider for the team in the Netherlands, we weren't comfortable at all he could pull it off. In the end, that was arguably our most convincing NC win, with him having time to celebrate when crossing the line.
And we also had another celebration in Sri Lanka, where Prasad launched his sprint with 700 meters to go. His main competitor Perera didn't hold his wheel when Prasad launched, and so he quickly opened a gap. And as we've got to know, especially from the past, there's no stopping Prasad if he finds clear road when hitting his max speed. Another celebration, and another national road race title!
On the time trial bikes, we had wins and titles for Nuha in Kosovo, making him a double champion, and Kalf in Estonia.
ember
Aker - MOT |
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| redordead |
Posted on 07-07-2026 10:12
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Team Leader
Posts: 5739
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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Hopefully De Lie delivers for you on the investment and expectations.
From my own experience there are not many more demoralising things than having the face of your team be a disappointment.
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| ember |
Posted on 07-07-2026 21:49
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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That feeling is easy to understand, and unfortunately there were a couple of those riders last season, with Pogacar being an obvious one. Hopefully he can bounce back in future seasons, that's the great thing about having a world class rider at such an age. Fingers crossed he can do just that for you! Especially now that several of the very best climbers and GC riders on paper are about to decline/declining. |
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| SotD |
Posted on 10-07-2026 07:53
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World Champion
Posts: 12911
Joined: 29-11-2006
PCM$: 2980.00
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A change of pace... As a nostalgic I like those old names, but as I felt like changing things up myself some seasons back I definately get it. Aker atleast stays put
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| ember |
Posted on 10-07-2026 19:52
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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Renewals: Retirement Home!?
Having team manager ember do R1 of renewals in the middle of everything else, is said to threaten his job at Aker - AB InBev. Mistakenly taking last season's DB as the current one, three riders that had been planned released for a year, amazingly got themselves a new contract. Happy days for Sarreau, Räim and Laporte!
Other than that, renewals went okay. De Lie was overpaid slightly again, showing again the "better safe than sorry" policy by the team regarding their future star. The same goes for Anderberg, who after his training negotiated well and got himself a nice wage. Now it's up to him to prove himself worthy of it in the upcoming season. Rumour has it he is very, very motivated to do just that.
Below follows our riders' stats, wages and availability going into this year's transfer season. But as you all know by now, we will be open to all kind of talks, both on riders listed as not available and riders listed for sale.
Thank you, Heine, for the very easy to use tool!
| Name | FL | MO | MM | HI | TT | ST | RS | RC | CB | SP | AC | FG | DH | PR | Age | Wage | Availability | | Attila Valter | 72 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 66 | 76 | 75 | 74 | 61 | 69 | 78 | 73 | 71 | 66 | 28 | 520000 | Unlikely | | Hampus Anderberg | 78 | 64 | 67 | 69 | 76 | 77 | 76 | 77 | 82 | 60 | 73 | 70 | 62 | 76 | 30 | 525000 | Unlikely | | Javier Romo | 71 | 72 | 76 | 80 | 66 | 78 | 76 | 70 | 60 | 67 | 71 | 78 | 63 | 63 | 27 | 220000 | For sale | | Dylan Groenewegen | 72 | 60 | 63 | 66 | 63 | 73 | 70 | 84 | 58 | 81 | 80 | 58 | 63 | 71 | 33 | 275000 | For sale | | Arnaud De Lie | 75 | 64 | 68 | 71 | 62 | 77 | 75 | 77 | 75 | 76 | 81 | 65 | 66 | 62 | 24 | 210000 | No | | Stephen Williams | 68 | 78 | 76 | 74 | 66 | 72 | 76 | 76 | 63 | 65 | 74 | 75 | 72 | 66 | 30 | 130000 | Unlikely | | Darshana Prasad | 74 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 66 | 73 | 74 | 80 | 67 | 78 | 79 | 54 | 69 | 68 | 32 | 135000 | Maybe | | Alexander Konychev | 82 | 61 | 64 | 67 | 60 | 77 | 78 | 73 | 63 | 76 | 75 | 76 | 61 | 73 | 28 | 115000 | Unlikely | | Soren Kragh Andersen | 81 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 70 | 77 | 78 | 72 | 65 | 76 | 74 | 72 | 71 | 83 | 32 | 150000 | Unlikely | | Andreas Stokbro | 75 | 62 | 66 | 69 | 66 | 75 | 73 | 66 | 77 | 71 | 71 | 69 | 67 | 66 | 29 | 100000 | Unlikely | | Cedric Bakke Christophersen | 69 | 75 | 75 | 74 | 67 | 74 | 79 | 72 | 64 | 66 | 72 | 74 | 68 | 71 | 25 | 90000 | No | | Connor Swift | 75 | 66 | 70 | 73 | 69 | 75 | 77 | 72 | 73 | 69 | 72 | 75 | 68 | 71 | 31 | 70000 | For sale | | Cristian Rodriguez | 70 | 70 | 73 | 76 | 67 | 76 | 70 | 70 | 55 | 65 | 71 | 75 | 74 | 67 | 31 | 60000 | For sale | | Adam Toupalik | 76 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 63 | 73 | 73 | 69 | 68 | 65 | 70 | 66 | 74 | 67 | 30 | 65000 | For sale | | Mark Donovan | 72 | 76 | 74 | 71 | 65 | 74 | 77 | 69 | 62 | 63 | 71 | 72 | 74 | 67 | 27 | 50000 | For sale | | Alexander Salby | 75 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 62 | 75 | 75 | 78 | 69 | 75 | 75 | 67 | 71 | 65 | 28 | 90000 | Unlikely | | Blerton Nuha | 72 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 66 | 75 | 72 | 69 | 58 | 65 | 74 | 79 | 73 | 66 | 26 | 50000 | No | | Tore Andre Vabo | 71 | 69 | 72 | 74 | 72 | 70 | 72 | 70 | 62 | 66 | 70 | 73 | 65 | 70 | 28 | 50000 | No | | Steven Kalf | 72 | 58 | 62 | 66 | 65 | 76 | 74 | 70 | 75 | 73 | 70 | 65 | 67 | 67 | 31 | 50000 | Unlikely | | Marc Sarreau | 74 | 57 | 61 | 64 | 59 | 72 | 74 | 73 | 71 | 75 | 74 | 62 | 63 | 66 | 33 | 60000 | For sale | | Mihkel Räim | 73 | 61 | 64 | 66 | 60 | 72 | 71 | 73 | 70 | 75 | 74 | 75 | 67 | 73 | 33 | 50000 | For sale | | Christophe Laporte | 70 | 59 | 65 | 70 | 59 | 67 | 69 | 69 | 72 | 69 | 68 | 64 | 61 | 62 | 34 | 50000 | For sale |
Edited by ember on 10-07-2026 20:53
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| jt1109 |
Posted on 10-07-2026 20:08
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3629
Joined: 23-07-2008
PCM$: 700.00
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BOOOOO put Swift up for sale!
solid renewals considering the self imposed limitations though Laporte probably unsellable at least the sacking fee isnt bad |
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| ember |
Posted on 10-07-2026 20:54
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Team Leader
Posts: 7249
Joined: 27-03-2008
PCM$: 900.00
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Your wish has been heard! |
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| Booker |
Posted on 10-07-2026 21:01
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1155
Joined: 03-07-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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Wait, it's that easy? OK, let me try something then.
BOOOOO put De Lie up for sale!
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