EF Pro Cycling unveils green alien-themed Giro d'Italia kit with Assos

EF Pro Cycling has unveiled its switch-out kit for the 2026 Giro d'Italia: a green, extraterrestrial-themed jersey built with new clothing partner Assos and tagged with the line "We Ride In Peace." An alien face sits across the chest, while the back of the jersey carries a UFO and an upside-down cow being beamed up from below. The team will debut the kit at the Wednesday pre-race presentation, with the Corsa Rosa rolling out from Bulgaria on Friday, May 8.

The concept leans hard into Close Encounters territory. Assos released a promotional video showing a cow being abducted and replaced by the green jersey, and the brand's website framed the launch with the line "Pink has been abducted. Returned to Earth as something new." EF's own messaging played the same beat: "We made contact. A signal. A message: We ride in peace. Do you? Join us." The choice of green is partly enforced by UCI rules, which bar team jerseys from clashing with Grand Tour leaders' jerseys, in this case the Giro's pink maglia rosa.CyclingNewsBikeRadar News

The launch is the first big set-piece of EF's new clothing partnership with Assos, after the team split from longtime supplier Rapha at the end of last year. Assos CEO Edwin Navez framed the design as a deliberate refusal to play things safe: "Too often in this sport, performance and identity are treated separately. We don't see it that way. With EF Pro Cycling, this is again about pushing both at the same time, engineering at the highest level, and a visual language that refuses to blend in." Team manager Jonathan Vaughters echoed the spirit: "If we're going to change kits, it should actually say something. Hide your cows. We're coming to this Giro with serious race ambitions."CyclingNews

Alongside the race kit, EF and Assos are selling a 'Space // Time' capsule that translates the alien narrative into pieces a fan can actually wear. The collection includes the limited-edition jersey and bib shorts in the team's race spec, plus a casual long-sleeve jersey carrying the same graphic language. Quantities are limited and the capsule is on sale now via Assos's website.BikeRadar NewsCyclingNews

EF has built a real tradition out of these one-off Giro looks. The team has used the UCI's clash rule as an excuse to go to creative places year after year, most famously in the 2020 Palace collaboration that put a cartoon duck on the kit, with later iterations from Cannondale and Rapha pushing the bit further. The Assos design slots neatly into that lineage, and arrives with EF chasing stage wins after GC option Richard Carapaz was ruled out following saddle-sore surgery. Carapaz finished third overall in 2025 before Simon Yates took the race lead on the final mountain stage.CyclingNewsBikeRadar News