British Cycling Loses 10% + Of Its Members After Taking On Shell In 8-Year Sponsorship Deal
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Earlier this month, British Cycling published its annual report and financial statements (link is external) for the year ending 31 March 2024, which revealed that its membership numbers had fallen from 137,968 to 128,663 over the previous year. Since then, the governing body has confirmed that the number of members has dropped even further, to 122,982 by the end of November. That means British Cycling’s membership has fallen by almost 11 per cent since March 2023. This most recent drop followed an initial mass exodus which took place from the national governing body, after it announced an eight-year deal with the UK branch of multinational oil and gas company Shell in October 2022, a partnership that attracted accusations of greenwashing and led to many cyclists revoking their memberships in protest, leading to a seven per cent fall in members within five months.
That protest, which has also taken place in the form of guerilla billboard and T-shirt campaigns, appears to be continuing into 2025, as cyclists responded to the news of British Cycling’s falling numbers by pointing to the Shell deal – and the oil company’s attempt to ‘greenwash’ its environmentally damaging activities by investing in an activity associated with sustainable, healthy living – as a key factor in them cancelling their membership. “Shell. What did they expect?” asked Michael on social media. “Ended my membership as soon as the Shell sponsorship was announced,” added Colin, while Jason said: “This is what happens when you take on Shell as a sponsor. That’s why I gave up my membership.” “I also left the moment the Shell deal was announced,” said Dan. “I used the membership mainly for the insurance but there’s plenty of other providers out there.” “British Cycling could be more scrupulous over who it accepts sponsorship from,” noted James, who also described the “greenwashing” aspect of the deal as “nauseating”.
However, others also pointed to other factors which could be linked to British Cycling’s recent shrinkage. “I’ve lost count of the number of things that made me cancel my membership,” said Howard, while Ben noted that the “association with HSBC and Shell, focus on competitive cycling, and ignoring normal cycling meant I bailed to Cycling UK.” Meanwhile, Peter also claimed that British Cycling’s offering was “poor value compared to Cycling UK membership, which includes insurance”.
“There is a growing gap between what British Cycling thinks its members want and what the members actually want and need,” added Keith. “I think you’ll find that if there was a viable alternative there would be an even bigger number of members leaving BC.” Along with the backlash associated with the Shell deal, the governing body’s falling numbers also, naturally, saw its income from membership drop from £6.1 million to £5.8 million.
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https://road.cc/content/news/shell-blamed-british-cycling-membership-drops-311731