A group of non-governmental organisations have called on the UCI to suspend the licence of UAE Team Emirates-XRG over the UAE’s alleged role in the Sudan civil war.
In a letter to the UCI’s president, David Lappartient, on Thursday, FairSquare, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, Sudan Unlimited, and Christian Solidarity Worldwide, write that Tadej Pogačar‘s team is used “to project a positive image of the UAE, which stands in marked contrast to the violence and repression that underpins its power”.
They also call on the UCI to “conduct an immediate review of its licensing policies”.
The UAE has been accused of providing support to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan, who, according to the UN, have carried out acts which show “hallmarks of genocide”. Amnesty International published evidence last year that the UAE had provided arms to the RSF.
Last year, Salem Aljaberi, the UAE’s assistant minister for security and military affairs, said: “The UAE strongly rejects the suggestion that it is supplying weaponry to any party involved in the ongoing conflict in Sudan.”
FairSquare, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, Sudan Unlimited, and Christian Solidarity Worldwide, argue that the “stern action” of suspension should happen until the UAE cuts support from the RSF.
In the letter to the UCI this week, the group of NGOs write: “UAE Team Emirates is under the financial and political control of the UAE state… It is financed and branded by state-owned companies in the United Arab Emirates. The team’s principal sponsors are two state-controlled entities. Emirates airline is owned by the government of the emirate of Dubai, and XRG is the investment wing of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, which is owned by the government of the emirate of Abu Dhabi.”
They continue: “The UAE’s actions in this regard [supporting the RSF] have prolonged and exacerbated the conflict in Sudan in which more than 150,000 people have been killed, with documented indiscriminate attacks on civilians, and more than 30 million people left in need of humanitarian aid.”
“It is clear that the team and its participation in UCI events acts as a prominent vehicle for the international branding and promotion of the UAE,” it continues. “The UAE has used its financial strength to create the best-resourced and most successful team in world cycling.”
UAE Team Emirates-XRG are currently the number-one ranked team in men’s cycling, which they have been since 2023. In Pogačar, they have the world’s best cyclist, who has won four Tours de France since 2020, and is the favourite for next month’s edition.
The letter continues: “Cycling’s most prominent and celebrated races have become a very public platform that the UAE state is using to project a positive image of the UAE, which stands in marked contrast to the violence and repression that underpins its power. The UCI has a responsibility to respect human rights throughout all its operations.”
The NGOs write: “The UCI’s code of ethics acknowledges its responsibility to safeguard the integrity and reputation of cycling throughout the world and its ‘duty of neutrality’ in their dealings with governments. In this context, the participation of teams established, funded, or promoted by governments facing persistent allegations of serious human rights violations raises questions about the processes undertaken by the UCI in the granting of licenses.”
UAE Team Emirates-XRG declined to comment, and the UCI was contacted for comment.
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