Team History
Photo: the 2026 squad
About UAE Team Emirates-XRG
UAE Team Emirates-XRG entered the highest level of professional cycling, the UCI World Tour, in early 2017. The team was created with the ambition of representing the entire United Arab Emirates on the global sporting stage, while promoting a healthy and active lifestyle through the use of the bicycle.
Season after season, UAE Team Emirates-XRG has attracted an increasing number of world-class riders and prestigious partners, steadily elevating its competitive level and international reputation. This sustained growth has translated into success at the very highest level of the sport, with victories in the world’s most prestigious races.
The culmination of this progress has come in recent years, as the team achieved the number-one ranking in the UCI World Tour for three consecutive seasons (2023, 2024, and 2025), confirming its status as the world’s leading professional cycling team.
At the heart of this success stands Tadej Pogačar, whose exceptional performances have defined a new era in modern cycling. Pogačar claimed overall victory at the Tour de France in 2020, 2021, 2024, and 2025, securing four Tour de France titles and cementing both his legacy and that of UAE Team Emirates among the greatest teams in cycling history.
Today, UAE Team Emirates represents excellence, ambition, and innovation, standing as a symbol of sporting success for the UAE and a benchmark for professional cycling worldwide.
2017
The new challenge to represent a whole Nation, the UAE, officially begins in 2017.
The team was launched as UAE-Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi on January 4th 2017 in a press conference, overseen by the president Matar Suhail Al Yabhouni Al Daheir, some days before the the teams race debut. On 27 January 2017 UAE Team Emirates obtained its first win, thanks to Rui Costa who won in Argentina on the queen stage of the Vuelta de San Juan on the Alto Colorado. In February, just before the Abu Dhabi Tour, which was also won by Rui Costa, Emirates was announced as co-sponsor of the team, together with a pool of other sponsors such as ADS and IGG.
2018
The team recruits several new riders and staff with the objective of progressing in the ranks of world cycling.
The difference is noticed with some important victories, with the team claiming it’s first wins in the Tour de France through Dan Martin and Alexander Kristoff.
Away from the racing side, the team also launches the Youth Academy to teach and encourage young boys and girls in the UAE on how to ride a bicycle and adapt it as part of their lifestyle.
2019
New riders continue to strengthened the team’s roster, with a clear focus on talent and youth.
The year brings success with victory in a major Classic through Kristoff at Gent-Wevelgem and the revelation of Tadej Pogačar : first with wins at the Volta Algarve and Tour of California before claiming three stage wins and third overall in his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta España.
2020
The 2020 season proved to be the most challenging but also the most rewarding year to-date.
The world faced many challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but the team persisted to claim 33 victories including the biggest prize in world cycling – the Tour de France through Tadej Pogačar.
2021
The year gets off to a fantastic start as the team claims its first overall victory at the UAE Tour.
Tadej Pogacar successfully defended his Tour de France title, securing another overall victory. Along with impressive wins at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, Il Lombardia and Tirreno-Adriatico.
2022
2022 marked another year of growth and progression for UAE Team Emirates with the team claiming more victories than ever before, with 47 wins for the Emirati squad throughout the season.
These victories were not only notable for their number but by their magnitude: Il Lombardia, Strade Bianche, GP Montreal, Tirreno-Adriatico, UAE Tour and stage victories in all three Grand Tours just to list a few.
2023
The team reached a new milestone in 2023 when they finished 1st in the UCI World Tour team rankings, winning 57 races in the process.
It added another Monument to the list of accolades with Tadej Pogačar arriving to an impressive solo victory at the Ronde Van Vlaanderen in Belgium.
The strength in depth of the squad is underscored with now fewer than 17 different riders taking professional victories during the year, a record amongst any UCI World Tour team.