The French Cycling Federation has been inspired by Team Sky and has started a process that should end up with the creation of a French version of the British team that is aiming at producing a French winner of the Tour de France. The project will also include track, BMX, mountain bike and cyclo-cross and is now looking for a main backer that should help it get off the ground possibly already in 2015.

Yesterday the French Cycling Federation FFC unveiled the plans to create a new major French team along the same lines as Team Sky that has seen the British road cycling scene flourish and produce two consecutive British winners of the Tour de France. The announcement and more details were given at a press conference held at the new Velodrome National which was inaugurated on Thursday and has been built on the back of the failed bid to host the 2012 Olympics and is hoped to see the French team reproduce the British track success in future years.

The idea was first revealed in February when FFC president David Lappartient expressed his desire to create a “Team Sky à la française". The plan is for the team to involve all cycling disciplines: road, cyclo-cross, track, BMX and mountain bike.

“The main objective is to participate in the Tour de France and to win the Tour with French riders, but there is also the aim of the Olympic Games, which is maybe a difference to other projects,” FFC managing director Olivier Quéguiner said. “We are focusing on athletes in all disciplines.”

The FFC is searching for a main backer and has teamed up with sports marketing agency Sportfive.

“We’re not just looking for a sponsor, we’re looking for a partner with whom to build a team and a company of 100 people, including 60 cyclists. A partner who would integrate and take decisions with the FFC,” Sportfive's Vincent Tong Cuong said. He added that the main driver will be a men's professional road team.

The plans have been presented to UCI president Brian Cookson and could see the team be created already for the 2015 season, with 2016 being more likely though. The team hopes to be part of the reformed WorldTour right from the beginning.

Cyclingnews have revealed a few more details than what emerged at the press conference. The team could merge with one of the existing three French WorldTour team and reportedly, there have already been contacts with FDJ.fr whose long-time sponsor renewed their contract for three years at the end of last season.

“For sure a company like FDJ has received this presentation and has to consider it of course,” Quéguiner said. “At the moment, it’s too early to say that the current FDJ could become this team because we are talking about 2015 and FDJ exists at this moment. It’s going on [next year] and we’re creating something else.”

Cyclingnews has also learnt that the team is actively seeking international sponsors in addition to French ones, admitting that it may be too much for a French company to cover the needed 20 million Euro of the proposed 25 million Euro budget.

The team will have its headquarters at the new Velodrome National.