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What is a development team in cycling?
A development team is a feeder squad, usually for under-23 riders, linked to a professional team. Most are registered as UCI Continental teams and share staff, equipment and philosophy with their parent WorldTeam or ProTeam.
Development teams became standard in the men's WorldTour in the 2020s. A parent team signs promising riders young, places them in its development squad, and moves the best ones up to the main team when they are ready. Names often make the link obvious, with "Devo", "Development" or "U23" added to the sponsor name.
For the parent team the benefits are control and cost. It can monitor training and racing closely, test riders in a structured environment, and promote them on its own timeline. For the rider, it offers a clearer route to the top tier, professional coaching and equipment. The trade-off is that the rider's next step is often decided inside one organisation.
Development riders can usually race some events with the parent team during the season, and many go on to sign their first professional contract as neo-pros with the same organisation.
Our 2026 list shows which development teams are linked to which professional teams, and our pathway section explains how riders progress from them.