The details of the OneCycling reform project, designed to shake up and modernize the world of professional cycling, are still largely a mystery, hidden from fans through secret negotiations and nondisclosure agreements.

Richard Plagge of Visma Lease-a-Bike appears to have been the original driving force behind the pre-OneCycling initiative. Today, other teams and major race organizers are involved.

EF Education-Easypost, Lidl-Trek, Ineos Grenadiers, Bora-Hansgrohe, and Soudal-QuickStep are some of the biggest teams in the sport, and all are committed to ensuring that One Cycling eventually pro They seem to believe that they can change the business model of cycling and reduce the reliance on sponsorship revenue and the need for success in the Tour de France.

Soudal-Quick Step team manager Patrick Lefebvre, once manager of the AIGCP team association, spent hours in meetings about possible reforms.

However, Lefebvre seems to believe in the One Cycling Project. This veteran team manager believes that private equity investors can be persuaded to fund One Cycling, and that several teams can work with other stakeholders to create something new that will boost their bottom line and eventually involve other teams, including ASO I believe that we can do this.

"You know why I believe in the One Cycling Project? Because if four or five teams get involved, it could work," Lefebvre told a small number of media outlets, including Cycling News, at the recent Sourdal Quickstep media day in Spain.

"It's always the same song. There are too many negative people in cycling. You can't just sit here and nothing will happen. If you want to see miracles, go to Lourdes. But if we want things to change, we have to work at it and work in the same direction.

"It won't happen with 18 people with their hands on the wheel; three, four, or five teams have to lead. Then the other teams will come. Then, when they are ready and have signed off, they can go to their colleagues and ask, 'I've done something like this, would you like to participate? Even if you don't do anything, you can get so much money from a new project.'

Some believe that the One Cycling Project could revolutionize the sport and eventually bring teams, race organizers, and even the UCI together.

In a possible one-cycling plan, a new private, commercially-driven company would own and operate an important part of the sport, with the UCI taking on a simpler governance role.

Private equity would fund the new company, with teams and organizers as shareholders. Private equity would be the source of funding for the new company and would be funded by the teams and organizers who would be shareholders.

The new company would create a sense of togetherness like many other modern sports, rather than the constant power struggles over governance and funding that currently undergird professional cycling. The new project could begin in the 2026 season, as the current WorldTour team and race licenses run through the end of 2025.

It is unclear whether Tour de France organizer ASO would be willing to participate in the One Cycling project. This powerful French organizer is the elephant in the room with great influence in the sport due to the sporting and commercial importance of the Tour de France.

The Grand Tour, like the Grand Slam of tennis, ranks above other races, and other ASO races such as Paris-Nice and Liège-Bastogne-Liège could eventually become part of a new one-cycling project. However, ASO has always tried to protect its own interests, especially the importance of the Tour de France.

"Indeed, they don't want to share the cake," Lefebvre admitted, showing how ASO defends the large amount of revenue generated by the Tour de France.

However, ASO may be interested in creating a new, larger cake if they get a bigger slice themselves.

"We are in a boat and its name is 'Cycling'. If we row in the same direction, the cake will grow. They (ASO) can keep the cake they have, but if the cake grows 200%, they will be at the table," Lefebvre said, mixing business sense with business model metaphors.

"I disagree with the late Amaury when he said that the Tour de France makes the athletes great. It is riders like Ankirel, Merckx, and Ino who make the Tour.

Lefebvre announced his new project on the eve of the 2025 Tour de France, hinting at a one-cycling dream scenario, perhaps the limelight of the biggest race on the calendar.

"It would be nice if it took place the week before the Tour de France, if I could say, 'I've launched a new project with ASO, you're welcome,'" Lefebvre said mischievously.

"Even if you don't agree, we will be at the Tour de France. If you have a World Tour license, they have to take us."

Lefebvre recently turned 69 and now shares management of the Sourdal-Quick Step team with new chief operating officer Jurgen Foret.

The two directors are as different as chalk and cheese, with Lefebvre known for being outspoken and Follet coming from the world of business consulting after working at Deloitte.

However, they seem to agree on the need for one-cycle reform.

"All great things began with a dream, cooperation, and good intentions," Follet told Cyclingnews about the OneCycling project and ASO's involvement.

"I think we all understand that we need to find ways to work together to make the pro-cycling revenue model stronger. It's in the interest of all of us. I don't see any other way to the future than to cooperate."

"ASO is an important player in pro cycling. They do their best and have some great races, but there are other strong players. The dream starts with the cooperation of several parties. If they succeed in doing that, they can convince other players to join them.

"For me, one cycling is about teams, organizers, and federations working together to make the model of cycling better and stronger. It's not about fighting over something that already exists, it's about making it stronger and making the business model stronger so that everyone benefits.

"We [the teams] can compete in races, but it's about working together as friends, making the model stronger and innovating it. Only then can cycling win."