Arkéa-B&B Hotels under review: A decent, yet ultimately painful final chapter in a French tragedy

Arkéa-B&B Hotels had exactly one victory in a one-day race this year, and they have Cristián Rodríguez to thank for that. The Spanish veteran, who recently signed a contract with XDS Astana, was the strongest in the very tough Mercan'Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes. It should be noted that not many big names traveled to the French 1.1 race.

That was the only victory, but the French team did manage to secure several places of honor. The one that stands out above the rest is Kévin Vauquelin's second place in the Flèche Wallonne. Because second behind Tadej Pogacar is actually first among “normal” people, right?

Arnaud Démare had a disappointing farewell year, but sprinted to an impressive fourth place in the brand new Copenhagen Sprint. Vauquelin (second) and Clément Venturini (third) were beaten in the sprint by Benoit Cosnefroy in the GP du Morbihan. At the same time, Jenthe Biermans took second place in the Muscat Classic in Oman.

And then there was the brand new Andorra Morabanc Clàssica, a tough one-day race with an uphill finish in the tiny country. Rodríguez was only beaten by Mattias Skjelmose in a sprint of five. Again, it was just not enough, so with only one victory in one-day races, it was a very poor year for Arkéa-B&B Hotels.

Eight of the nine victories for the French team came in stage races, although an important nuance must be made here. Arkéa-B&B Hotels won only in its own country and in 2.1 races. In addition, it mainly relied on one man, namely Vauquelin.

The French talent, who was announced some time ago as a new signing for INEOS Grenadiers, dominated the Etoile de Bessèges with two stage wins and the overall classification. In the Région Pays de la Loire Tour, Vauquelin took another stage win and the overall classification, while Victor Guernalec also won a stage there.

In La Route d'Occitanie, there was another time trial victory for Raúl García Pierna. In contrast, the last victory in stage races was the overall victory of (the departing Groupama-FDJ) Ewen Costiou in the Tour du Limousin: eight victories, but all at the 2.1 level in their own country. Reasonable, but not spectacular, we can safely say.

However, it was in stage races that the team made the biggest impression, mainly thanks to Vauquelin. Seventh in a fantastic Tour, with seven top-10 finishes, and second in the Tour de Suisse in preparation for it: Vauquelin confirmed his definitive breakthrough in 2025, following his Tour victory last year. The rest lagged.

For a team that had to fight for survival all year, Arkéa-B&B Hotels scored reasonably well. In total, it achieved nine victories, the same number as last year, with an additional Tour victory and two Pro victories. All in all, the (former) editors of IDLProCycling.com arrive at a reasonable 6.3.

Arkéa-B&B Hotels is set to disappear, which is a real shame. The team saw both sponsors withdraw, so team manager Hubert had to look for new financial backers. With no one coming forward, the Breton team will disappear from the peloton after twenty years.

This also means that the team did not attract any riders; instead, they only saw people leave. Fortunately for them, many riders have already found a new team, but for others, there are still some very exciting weeks ahead. The riders who are still without a contract for next year are discussed below.

Many riders did find a new home, with INEOS making the most significant move by signing Vauquelin. The talented Embret Svestad-Bårdseng is following his French teammate to the British team. At the same time, Amaury Capiot (Jayco AlUla), Raúl García Pierna (Movistar), and Rodríguez (XDS Astana), among others, also have exciting new adventures ahead of them.

(Provisional) incoming: -

(Provisional) outgoing: Jenthe Biermans (Cofidis), Amaury Capiot (Jayco AlUla), Raúl García Pierna (Movistar), Donavan Grondin (Veloce Club Rouen 76), Simon Guglielmi (St Michel-Preference Home-Auber 93), Laurens Huys (Nice Métropole Côte d'Azur), Luca Mozzato (Tudor), Cristían Rodríguez (XDS Astana), Louis Rouland (Cofidis), Embret Svestad-Bårdseng (INEOS Grenadiers), Martin Tjøtta (Uno-X) and Kévin Vauquelin (INEOS Grenadiers)

Since the team will cease to exist next year, there will logically be no ones to watch. That is why we are discussing the riders who, according to the latest information at the time of writing, do not yet have a contract for 2026. The Italian Giosuè Epis, for example, who made his first Grand Tour appearance this year in the Giro d'Italia, albeit relatively anonymously.

His compatriot Alessandro Verre is in a similar situation, having finished second in the Sestrière stage of the Giro. Furthermore, classics specialist Florian Sénéchal still does not have a contract for next year, nor do experienced cyclo-cross rider Clément Venturini, youngsters Pierre Thierry and Léandre Lozouet, Miles Scotson, experienced Michel Ries, hill specialist Mathis Le Berre, time trial specialist Thibault Guernalec, and good old Élie Gesbert.

The disappearance of Arkéa-B&B Hotels has drastic consequences, which these riders seem to have to accept. We hope that another team will come knocking, as the disappearance of a team with such a history is sad in itself.