# UCI terminates Track Champions League

*By Simon | March 24, 2025*

![UCI terminates Track Champions League](https://globalkeirin.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/03/tcldark.jpg)

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## 󠀁[UCI terminates Track Champions League](https://globalkeirin.com/2025/03/uci-terminates-track-champions-league/)󠁿

24 March 2025

The UCI Track Champions League, four years into an eight-year partnership with
the company now known as Warner Bros Discovery Sports, is dead.

It was introduced in 2021 _(link removed: site has been wiped)_ as ‘a new
chapter in the history of track cycling, set to elevate the sport to a new level
of global prestige’.

But a statement posted on the event’s website (
[also at uci.org](https://www.uci.org/pressrelease/the-uci-and-wbd-sports-confirm-the-end-of-the-uci-track-champions-league-and/1PmsP1ZjZXHbIYs17XcUb6)
) confirms that ‘the UCI Track Champions League was held for the last time in
2024’, citing ‘the decision of WBD Sports to redefine its involvement in the
promotion of track cycling’.

The statement continues: ‘In this context, from 2026, the UCI Track Nations Cup
will be renamed the UCI Track World Cup… (and) will consist of three rounds’ –
although we can’t avoid noting, the Track Nations Cup was _meant_ to consist of
three rounds, but only managed to deliver one this year, in a largely empty
arena.

**Retreat**

It’s hard to view this as anything other than a retreat by WBD: they claim to be
‘delighted to continue (their) partnership with the UCI, broadcasting
world-class men’s and women’s action from the velodromes, such as the UCI Track
World Cup for the first time’. But really, in terms of track cycling coverage,
that’s the bare minimum one could expect.

And without WBD’s backing, the UCI clearly doesn’t believe it can support the
competition on its own. So it retreats to a minimal international racing
calendar, barely enough to defend potential challenges to track cycling’s status
as an Olympic sport.

We knew changes were coming, but we didn’t see _this_ coming.

**Spectacular**

The Track Champions League, launched by James Pope – now CEO of DerbyWheel, was
created to be different. A spectacular evening of racing, adapted and packaged
for television, with a developing narrative over the course of each season.
London’s consistent sellout crowds were the exception rather than the rule, but
attendances definitely seemed to be trending upwards. It looked like the future,
literally.

But in the wake of this news, the immediate future of UCI-backed track cycling –
particularly for sprinters, who don’t have the safety net of a possible road
career – looks very thin indeed.

**‘A real shame’**

‘While this isn’t entirely unexpected, it’s still a real shame for track
cycling,’ Pope wrote
[on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7309973769320644609/)
a few hours after the news broke. ‘I still believe in the vision behind the
concept – the sport needed innovation, and TCL brought a fresh format and
presentation to the track. But the reality is that one event alone couldn’t
solve the broader challenges within the track cycling ecosystem.

‘That said, I’m incredibly proud of what we achieved. We redefined the live
event experience, brought track cycling to new audiences, and created moments
that will stay with me forever. Grateful to have been part of it and to everyone
who made it happen.

‘So where does track cycling go from here? I’ll share my thoughts on that
separately…’ We’re looking forward to it.

**Categories:** Original
**Tags:** uci, ucitcl