Soudal-QuickStep has announced the eight riders who will take part in the 2025 Tour de France, building a versatile team around their captain Remco Evenepoel.

The Belgian champion, fresh from winning the national time trial title and bronze in the 2024 edition of the Grande Boucle, will be able to count on a group of high-level climbers and rouleurs to do battle with Pogačar, Vingegaard and Roglič.

Ilan Van Wilder will be the main lieutenant in the mountains, after a season that saw him protagonist in the stage races with several top 10 placings. Alongside him will be the Frenchman Valentin Paret-Peintre, new acquisition of the team and debutant at the Tour.

The experience of Mattia Cattaneo and Pascal Eenkhoorn, both at their second Tour, will be invaluable in the intermediate stages, as will that of German Max Schachmann, third in the last Itzulia Basque Country.

For the sprints, the team will rely on Tim Merlier, who will be able to count on the help of the faithful Bert Van Lerberghe as the last man. The Belgian sprinter arrives at the Tour in excellent condition after recent successes at the Brussels Cycling Classic and the Tour of Belgium.

"The goal is to do a good general classification and win a stage, taking it day by day," Evenepoel said. "The first week will be very nervous and full of pitfalls, it will be essential not to waste time."