The explosion of Paul Seixas has been so spectacular as to create a destabilizing effect for his own team, Decathlon CMA CGM. Rumors about the future of the French team have been circulating for months, as have those of interest from half the world for the talent that is putting on a show in the Basque Country.

Since Decathlon became the owner of the team, taking over the formation from its creator Vincent Lavenu, there have been many rumors, the latest of which suggests the team will race under a Swiss license starting next season.

Decathlon's delegated general manager Mathieu Charpentier intervened yesterday to deny the rumors: "Last year they wrote that we would move the team's headquarters to Lille, then that we would go to Belgium, now that we're ready to move to Switzerland. But I can tell you that we will continue to race under the French flag and that our operational center will remain in Chambery. These days we are focused on the sporting aspect of the season, we want to win the Itzulia Basque Country and we want to do well at the Roubaix".

It's difficult to say where the truth actually lies, just as it's hard to understand what the future of Seixas might be, who is under contract until the end of 2027. First of all, the fact that the team's operational headquarters remains in Chambery is absolutely not binding: Jayco AlUla, for example, is based in the Varese area and flies the Australian flag, and besides, the distance between Chambery and the Swiss border is really limited.

Not only that, some colleagues have had fun with the numbers and have highlighted how Seixas resident in France and registered for a French team has a cost 45% higher than a Seixas resident in Andorra and registered for a non-French team. In other words, with the second solution you can guarantee a much higher salary to the rider by investing the same amount. And it's undeniable that the solution could prove very interesting for a team that wants to hold on to tomorrow's champion who has already exploded today.

It's clear that the discussion is much more complex than we've portrayed it, the variables are countless (if Seixas decided to leave the team, even if they moved the headquarters to the moon it would be impossible to keep him) but it's an important signal that the top brass of cycling, coincidentally French, must not underestimate.