Campagnolo sells minority stake to investment group with links to Pinarello
Family-owned Italian company has lost ground to its competitors in recent years, but may be about to turn a corner
Campagnolo has announced that SPAC SA, a Swiss-based holding company, has acquired a “minority stake in the company through a strategic investment”, with the Campagnolo family remaining as the majority shareholder.
The Vicenza-based cycling giant, famed for such innovations as the quick-release skewer, has been family-owned since Tullio Campagnolo founded the company in 1933.
Little is known about SPAC SA, but it is said to have “other investments in the cycling industry, including Pinarello” and has been linked to billionaire Ivan Glasenberg, who also owns the Pinarello Q36.5 team and the companies that sponsor it.
Campagnolo says the investment “represents an important step” in its “evolution" and will bring “additional resources and strategic expertise” that will “strengthen its position for the future”. It also says that it “will continue to operate entirely independently” of SPAC’s other investments.
In recent years, Campagnolo has sought to regain its standing after losing ground to Shimano and SRAM in the groupset battle; it didn’t release its first wireless groupset until 2023, with the launch of Super Record 12V. Subsequently, a complete overhaul of its groupset architecture occurred with the release of Super Record 13V in 2025 and the new Record in 2026 – the latter of which was released to fill an obvious gap in the product portfolio, and has helped the brand get back in the game in a serious way.
Campagnolo says that this new partnership will allow it to “accelerate this journey”, as it seeks to “strengthen its technological and product capabilities”.
The brand continued, saying, "With the continued commitment of the Campagnolo family and the support of SPAC as a minority shareholder, Campagnolo is opening a new chapter in its history, with greater resources, a clear direction and renewed ambition to compete at the highest levels of global cycling."
But the announcement also states that the investment will help Campagnolo achieve greater involvement in professional racing, aiming to "strengthen its connection with elite cycling and professional racing, which have always been central to the brand’s identity, innovation and credibility."
Once a supplier to many pro teams, its presence in the WorldTour has dwindled. In fact, Campagnolo currently has no presence in the WorldTour, losing out to Shimano and SRAM, both of whom share the majority – 10 teams currently use Shimano, while 8 are aboard SRAM. At present, Campagnolo supplies equipment to lower-tier ProTeams such as Team Cofidis (relegated from the WorldTour at the end of 2025) and Bardiani–CSF 7-Saber.
With this acquisition and SPAC SA's links to Glasenberg, there's a high possibility we'll see Campagnolo return to the WorldTour next season with Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling.
