Organizers of the Volta Ao Algarve have confirmed the nine teams that will compete in next season's season opener, which will be held February 16-20.

Four WorldTour teams have been confirmed after organizers invited the top four teams in the 2021 UCI rankings. Quick Step Alphavinil will race along with Ineos Grenadiers, Jumbo Visma, and UAE Team Emirates.

These teams have dominated the race since 2012, but Joao Rodriguez of W52 Porto will break that spell of dominance in the 2021 race. Ineos has won the race four times with Richie Porte, Geraint Thomas (twice), and Michał Kwiatkowski.

Quick Step has won three times with Kwiatkowski, Tony Martin, and Lemko Evenpoel. Jumbo Visma's Primoš Roglic and UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogachar won in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

Five professional teams are also confirmed for the race, led by Mathieu van der Pol's Alpecin Phoenix. They will be joined by Caja Rural Seguros RGA, Euskaltel Euskadi, Arkea Samsic, and American Rally Cycling, which will be participating for the 12th consecutive year.

There are still 16 places left in the race, which usually attracts 25 teams, of which 8-10 are occupied by Portuguese continental teams such as W52-Porto, Efapel, and Radio Popular Boavista.

The race will revisit the traditional summit finishes of Alto da Foia and Alto do Marhão, along with a short individual time trial.

In the 2021 race, which was postponed to May due to the COVID-19 epidemic, Rodriguez overturned Ethan Hayter's (Ineos Grenadiers) GC lead on the final day in Marhão to win. Rodriguez finished second, with Quick Step's Kasper Asgreen rounding out the podium.