UAE Team Emirates-XRG Rounds Off Historic 2025 With International Recognition

• UAE Team Emirates-XRG named best international team of 2025 by Marca
• Tadej Pogacar named best international athlete by Marca to add to growing list of achievements

Tuesday, 6th January, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – UAE Team Emirates-XRG have brought the curtain down on a landmark 2025 season with further international recognition, as Spanish sports media giant Marca named the Emirati squad the Best International Team of 2025, while Slovenian superstar Tadej Pogacar was crowned Best International Athlete.

The accolades cap off another unrivalled year for the UAE’s UCI World Tour Cycling Team, who continued to break decades-old cycling records throughout 2025. The season was highlighted by a record-breaking 97 victories, the most ever achieved by a team in a single campaign, alongside 56 podium finishes, with 20 different riders contributing wins across the year, a clear demonstration of the squad’s depth and consistency.

Building on their success in 2023 and 2024, UAE Team Emirates-XRG once again finished the season ranked UCI No.1 Team, securing the top spot for a third consecutive year. The achievement underlined a campaign defined not only be headline victories, but by sustained excellence across the entire calendar.

That dominance has now translated beyond the cycling world. Marca, Spain’s leading sports media outlet and one of the most influential platforms in global sport, recognised UAE Team Emirates-XRG as the Best International Team of 2025, ahead of global sporting powerhouses Paris Saint-Germain and the McLaren Formula 1 Team. The honour reflects the team’s growing status on the world stage and its continued ability to create history through performances on the road.

At the forefront of the team’s success was once again Tadej Pogacar, who closed out the season ranked as the UCI World No.1 Cyclist. His 2025 campaign featured victory at the Tour de France, podium finishes across all five Monuments, including three wins, and further World Championship success on the global stage. Those achievements saw Pogacar named Marca’s Best International Athlete, surpassing stars from across world sport including Jannik Sinner and Shohei Ohtani.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG Team Principal and CEO, Mauro Gianetti, said: “This reflects not only what we achieved in 2025, but the collective efforts of our riders, staff, and partners, who world tirelessly all year. Being recognised beyond the world of cycling shows the scale of our achievements, and it motivates us even more as we look ahead to 2026. We are incredibly proud to represent the UAE on the global stage and can’t wait to kickstart the new season.”

As UAE Team Emirates-XRG continue to strive for excellence both on and off the bike, recognition from one of the world’s most respected sporting institutions provides further validation of a season that will be remembered as one of the most dominant in modern cycling. With 2026 on the horizon, the team now turns its focus to building on an era of sustained success and pushing the boundaries even further.