ŠKODA launch 'Your team' fantasy Cycling game for the Tour de France

ŠKODA have been an official sponsor of the Tour de France for 11 years and their involvement with cycling goes back a lot further than that: like many motor manufacturers they started out as a bicycle company, way back in 1894. This year they're running a Fantasy Cycling game and offering one lucky player the opportunity to sample the VIP lifestyle at next year's Tour.

Anyone who's familiar with this site will know we've been running road.cc Fantasy Cycling for five seasons now, and if you've played it then having a go at the ŠKODA game should be as familiar as putting on an old sock, although it'll hopefully be more fun. It's a similar game engine but there's a few subtle differences: the gameplay isn't quite the same, so make sure you give the rules a read through if you're used to the road.cc game. There's some functions specifically designed to help new players, such as the auto-complete button which will randomly fill your team with a mix of stars and domestiques. There's also a knowledge section with articles on the race and the game, and videos from Ed Clancy and Chris Opie giving their thoughts on this year's race.

The winner gets a ŠKODA road bike – nope, we didn't know either – and a VIP package to go and watch the 2015 Tour and hang out with the stars. Not bad. There's runners-up prizes too.

"As a brand, ŠKODA has been behind cycling for over 100 years and this year marks 11 years of Le Tour sponsorship", said Emily Burns of ŠKODA. "We are the ‘Team behind the Teams’ and really feel like this game brings Le Tour to the masses by connecting the event with a broad digital audience."

The game is open for entries now: to have a go, head over to skodayourteam.co.uk

And of course there's nowt to stop you entering more than one Fantasy Cycling game, now is there?