British Continental team insist they will race in 2025 despite fraud accusations against Swiss backer

British Continental team Hess Cycling have dismissed fraud allegations against the team's backer, London-based Swiss businessman Rolf Hess, and insist that they will race as planned in the coming season.

Reports recently emerged that entrepreneur Rolf Hess is currently under investigation in Spain after allegations of fraud were made against his firm, United Global Water Holdings Limited (UGW).

According to a report in Swiss publication Inside Parade Platz, the allegations include claims that Hess and his associates tricked investors into putting nearly one million euros into the company after promising significant financial returns, despite knowing it was unlikely to be successful.

Hess launched his women's cycling team in the UK in 2023 after applying for a British Continental race licence. The team previously competed under a Luxembourg licence before moving under UK jurisdiction two years ago. At the time of their arrival in the UK the team said that Hess’s aim was to build the squad’s budget to €5million (£4.3million) within five years.

A spokesperson for the team told Cycling Weekly that they were aware of the reports regarding legal proceedings against Hess and said that the team currently would continue as planned in 2025. The team is not yet registered with the UCI or British Cycling officially, but the process is said to be ongoing.

A team statement said: "Back in the summer of 2024, Mr Hess was advised of the possibility of legal action in Spain in relation to spurious claims against his involvement with United Global Water Holdings Limited (UGW).

"Due to the total lack of substance of the claims, legal counsel in Spain and in the UK advised Mr Hess to wait until formal documents were issued. As of this time, no such correspondence has ever been received at any Hess offices nor to our lawyers."

It continued: "Mr Hess completely refutes any suggestion that he or any of his associates have acted inappropriately whatsoever and will be consulting with lawyers to address this baseless smear campaign on his reputation.

"While we take these reports seriously, we would like to underline that this situation has nothing to do with Hess Cycling and will not affect the team in any way. The Hess Cycling Team is looking forward to competing in UCI Continental team competitions in 2025 and beyond."

Regarding the team’s uncertain registration, the spokesperson for Hess said the team "should be back online next week" and explained that they "still have to upload our newest kit".

Hess previously said that the team aimed to gain WorldTour status and compete in the Tour de France Femmes in 2025. The last UK team to receive an invite to the race was Lifeplus Wahoo, who participated in 2022 and 2023.

Lifeplus Wahoo ended operations at the end of 2024 after being unable to find a sponsor to pay for naming rights this year. British rider Kate Richardson moved from Lifeplus to Hess at the end of the season and is set to be part of the team this year.