Extending backing of the team which began in 2011, the Telefónica company has today committed to three more years as the title sponsor of the Movistar WorldTour team.
The news, which is very welcome in light of the tough Spanish economic situation and the folding of squads such as Euskaltel Euskadi and Vacansoleil DCM, safeguards the future of a team which clocked up a number of big performances this season.
These include Nairo Quintana’s runner-up slot in the Tour de France, stage wins by the Colombian and Rui Costa in the same race, Costa’s world championship title plus Tour de Suisse victories and Alejandro Valverde’s third overall in the Vuelta and third in the worlds.
The most recent result was the stage win and overall success by Beñat Intxausti in the Tour of Beijing, something which helped the team secure first overall in the WorldTour team rankings.
“Telefónica started sponsoring the team in 2011 and the brand's overview on this partnership is more than satisfactory, both working together to achieve important victories and recognition on a global scale,” stated the company in a team release.
It said that the next three years would see the Telefónica company aiming to make its backing of the team an ‘opportunity for innovation and development in the digital sphere.’
“The team has been a great Telefónica amabassador in many countries, having raced with all its commercial brands -Movistar, O2 and Wo- through the most diverse competitions in the world, including the Tour de France, the Tour of Britain and the Tour of Beijing.”
It pointed out that via its backing of the cycling team, that the company has brand visibility in Europe, Latin America and in Asia, and that it has clocked up 82 victories in three years.
While Costa is moving on to the Lampre Merida team in 2014, Quintana, Valverde and others make it likely that the team will continue to clock up strong results next season and beyond.