Visma-Lease a Bike say they want to be the All Blacks or Chicago Bulls of cycling, but is this possible?

The Dutch super team might be winning it all, but can they create a legacy?

Visma-Lease a Bike
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Between 2009 and 2019, New Zealand's men's rugby union team - the All Blacks - was ranked number one in the world. In 2013, that team won every match they played. Between 2015 and 2016, the All Blacks won 18 matches in a row, including the 2015 Rugby World Cup; and between 2009 and 2017, they won every match they played at home. Dominance does not come close to describing the grip they held over the sport.

The All Blacks are always mentioned whenever the conversation turns to the best sports teams of all time, just like FC Barcelona and the Chicago Bulls; outfits which didn't just dominate their respective sports, but changed how the sport was played, and were era-defining. 15 years on from Barcelona's epochal Champions League win in 2009, and the best football teams in the world are still playing in a way influenced by them. These are special teams, which will be remembered.

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