The Ale Cipollini team announced today that it has signed a second title sponsorship deal with Slovenia's BTC and will change its team name to Ale BTC Ljubljana beginning with the 2020 season. The partnership will allow the team to apply for UCI Women's World Tour status through the 2023 season.

"I have always valued cycling. It is in my DNA and in the DNA of the company I represent, but women's cycling means more to me.

"Being president of this team is an honor and a great responsibility. I am always thinking about how to bring more attention and visibility to this beautiful team and to the world of women's cycling, and I am proud of my partnership with the BTC. I am confident that together we can achieve great results and ultimately give the women's cycling movement and our team the tangible impetus that both deserve."

BTC City is one of the largest shopping and entertainment centers in Europe. The company's marketing director, Maya Oven, will be the team's new vice president. Oven was the UCI representative for the BTC City Ljubljana women's team, but it is unclear if this move is a merger of the two teams.

The UCI will introduce two tiers for women's teams in 2020, with five teams in the top-level WorldTour and the rest in UCI women's teams. World Tour status will come with perks such as minimum salary and maternity leave. Not all of the top women's teams are applying to get one of the five spots, as this obligation requires a larger budget. So far, eight teams: Trek-Segafredo, Canyon SRAM, Mitchelton Scott, CCC Liv, Movistar, Team Sunweb, Yale-Cipollini, and FDJ have applied for World Tour licenses.

The UCI will add five teams each year until 2022, bringing the total to 15 teams; in 2023, the UCI will require a minimum salary equal to that of the men's Pro Continental team.

"We are very enthusiastic and proud of this new Italian-Slovenian collaboration that will allow the participation of the women's cycling team Alé BTC Ljubljana in the UCI World Tour race series. This will be an opportunity for our cyclists to grow and continue their success story. Their participation in the UCI WorldTour will be promoted globally and will enhance the brand reputation of not only BTC, but all other sponsors as well."