A little over one week before Tour de France 2026 begins in Barcelona, on July 4, Team Visma - Lease a Bike has announced the team that will accompany Jonas Vingegaard in their attempt to claim Tour de France bike, challenging Tadej Pogačar, who starts as favourite for what would by his record-equalling fifth Tour de France.
Vingegaard, who won Tour de France in 2022 and 2023, will be accompanied by Victor Campenaerts, Edoardo Affini, Per Strand Hagenes, Matteo Jorgenson, Sepp Kuss, Bruno Armirail, and Davide Piganzoli, Team Visma announced on Tuesday. Wout van Aert, who won ten stages, will miss the race for the first time in eight years due to an infected elbow wound.
<social>https://x.com/vismaleaseabike/status/2069431834996326501</social>
Marc Reed, Team Visma lead coach, said their goal "is very obvious, I think, especially when you have Jonas: we want to win the Tour de France". Jonas comes from a very dominant victory at Giro d'Italia, winning by over five minutes, but Pogacar has also dominated in a shorter race, Tour de Suisse, winning by six and a half minutes and winning three of the five stages, setting a record in the 67 years of the race.
What's more, CyclingWeekly reports that Pogacar will be more rested: he has only had 16 race days before Tour de France in 2026 (winning 13 times), while Vingegaard has had 36 race days in 2026, mainly because of Giro d'Italia.
"The Tour might see a level of dominance it hasn't witnessed in decades", said CyclingWeekly, remembering that when Eddy Merkcx won his fifth Tour de France in 1974, he had also won his debut at Tour de Suisse earlier. But Team Visma trusts that Vingegaard and his team can achieve it, and will fight until the end for another Tour de France for the Dane.