Abstract
Professional road cycling is one of the oldest professional sports, and its organizational structure has been subject of heated debates during the past decades. The search for an optimal institutional setting is not trivial since cycling has several peculiarities which heavily complicate the finding of an equilibrium satisfying all players involved. But not only is the relationship between these players quite complex, there is also an unclear power distribution between the involved parties making it difficult for one side to enforce changes that could possibly harm other actors. This chapter presents a multi-sided perspective of the organizational structure of modern professional cycling. After a historical review of its recent development, it provides a detailed analysis of the current organizational setting, describing its complex interplay, the different players involved, and the current contest modus, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) WorldTour. Some specific issues are analyzed in more detail: the underlying peculiarities of professional cycling, which make its organization so difficult, the ongoing debate about the optimal contest modus, and some organization-related dysfunctions such as doping.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Brewer BD (2002) Commercialization in professional cycling. Sociol Sport J 19:276–301
Candelon B, Dupuy A (2012) Hierarchical organization and performance inequality: evidence from professional cycling, Maastricht School of Management Working Paper No. 2012/12
Cherchye L, Vermeulen F (2006) Robust rankings of multidimensional performances: an application to Tour de France racing cyclists. J Sports Econ 7(4):359–373
Desbordes M (2008) The future of the Tour de France: from an independent style of organization to ‘A Formula One Model’? In: Chadwick S, Arthur D (eds) International Cases in the Business of Sport, pp 358–371
DFL – Deutsche Fußball Liga (ed) (2014). Bundesliga Report 2014. Frankfurt/Main
Freeburn L (2007) The UCI ProTour: an enduring reform or a train wreck waiting to happen? Aust N Z Sports Law J 2(1):15–58
Hamilton T, Coyle D (2012) The secret race: inside the hidden world of the Tour de France. Bantam Books, New York
Haugen KK (2004) The performance-enhancing drug game. J Sports Econ 5(1):67–86
Korn E, Robeck V (2013) The role of sports physicians in doping: a note on incentives, MAGKS Discussion Paper in Economics No. 17-2013
Long JG (2012) Tour de France: a taxpayer bargain among mega sporting events? In Maennig W, Zimbalist A (eds) International handbook on the economics of mega sporting events, pp 357–385
Maso B (2011) Der Schweiß der Götter: Die Geschichte des Radsports. Covadonga, Bielefeld
Mignot J-F (2013) Cogs and wheels: social mechanisms on the Tour de France. Unpublished Manuscript
Morrow S, Idle C (2008a) The challenges of modernizing a professional sport: a case study of professional road cycling. In: Chadwick S, Arthur D (eds) International cases in the business of sport, pp 45–59
Morrow S, Idle C (2008b) Understanding change in professional road cycling. Eur Sport Manag Q 8(4):315–335
Rebeggiani L, Tondani D (2008) Organizational forms in professional cycling—efficiency issues of the UCI Pro Tour. Int J Sport Finance 3(1):19–41
Robeck V (2014) Professional cycling and the fight against doping, Working Paper, Philipps Universität Marburg, Marburg
Rogge N, Van Reeth D, Van Puyenbroeck T (2013) Performance evaluation of Tour de France cycling teams using data envelopment analysis. Int J Sport Finance 8(3):236–257
Schröder R (2002) Radsport: Geschichte - Kultur - Praxis. Die Werkstatt, Gottingen
Strulik H (2012) Riding high—success in sports and the rise of doping cultures. Scand J Econ 114:539–574
UCI (ed) (2013) Joint agreements. Aigle
UCI (2014a) UCI cycling regulations: part II road races. Aigle
UCI (ed) (2014b) 2013 UCI annual report. Aigle
UCI (ed) (2014c) Info reform newsletter, Issue 1 (March 2014). Aigle
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Rebeggiani, L. (2016). The Organizational Structure of Professional Road Cycling. In: Van Reeth, D., Larson, D. (eds) The Economics of Professional Road Cycling. Sports Economics, Management and Policy, vol 11. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22312-4_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22312-4_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-22311-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-22312-4
eBook Packages: Economics and FinanceEconomics and Finance (R0)