**CONFIRMED: Wout van Aert will depart from WorldTeam Visma after 2025 season**
Belgian cycling star Wout van Aert has shocked the pro peloton by confirming he will leave WorldTeam Visma–Lease a Bike at the end of the 2025 season. The announcement, delivered at a press conference in Antwerp, marks the end of an era for both van Aert and the Dutch squad that helped shape his road career into one of the sport’s most versatile and successful.
“It’s not a decision I made lightly,” van Aert told reporters. “Visma has been like a family to me. But after so many great years, I feel the time will be right to look for a new challenge.”
Van Aert, 30, has been with the team since 2019 and has delivered a string of high-profile victories, including multiple Tour de France stage wins, monuments like Milan-San Remo, and cyclocross world titles. He is widely seen as one of the most complete riders in the world, equally dominant in bunch sprints, tough one-day classics, and support roles in Grand Tours.
Team manager Richard Plugge paid tribute to van Aert’s impact on the squad. “Wout has been fundamental to our success,” Plugge said. “He’s more than a rider—he’s a leader, a mentor, and a symbol of what we’ve built. We will support him fully in his final season with us and wish him the very best in whatever comes next.”
Van Aert declined to confirm his next team, saying only that he had received “a lot of interest” from other WorldTour outfits as well as rumors linking him to a possible return to cyclocross-focused programs. He also stressed that he intends to “give everything” in 2025 to finish his Visma career on a high.
“I want to leave with no regrets,” van Aert said. “There’s still so much to do—big races to target, the Tour de France, the Classics. I owe it to my teammates and the staff to give them my very best until the end.”
Fans and analysts are already speculating on where the Belgian superstar might land for 2026, with teams like INEOS Grenadiers, UAE Team Emirates, and Lidl-Trek all rumored to be interested. Meanwhile, Visma will now face the difficult task of planning for life without one of their most important riders.
For now, though, both team and rider are focused on making 2025 a fitting farewell to one of cycling’s most celebrated partnerships.
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