Bjarne Riis, a close friend of Ullrich and former teammate, said the 1997 Tour de France champion would be welcome at CSC-Tiscali, the Danish team that he manages, if he wanted to leave his current team Telekom.

"If Jan approaches me and says he wants to come to me, we can discuss it," said Riis, who won the Tour with Telekom in 1996.

Telekom said the 28-year-old Ullrich would not be paid until his contract, which is thought to be worth $1.3m a year until 2003, is renegotiated following the German cycling federation's decision to suspend him for six months.

Olaf Ludwig, the team spokesman, said: "For the moment we're not paying Ullrich. The last time he was paid was in June.

"There will be further discussions when Jan returns from his ban."

Ullrich, who has also finished second in the Tour four times, tested positive for amphetamines on 12 June while in rehab for a knee injury that had forced him out of this year's Tour de France.

Riis said he has not contacted Ullrich about a switch, despite his statement two weeks ago that a rider of Ullrich's quality would be welcome on any team.

"I don't want to hurt my relationship with Telekom," Riis said.

"Jan needs some peace and quiet first. Nothing is happening at the moment. But if Jan needs me, I'll be there."

CSC-Tiscali need to replace team captain Laurent Jalabert at the end of the season as the Frenchman is retiring.

And Telekom are believed to be interested in Colombia's Santiago Botero as a possible replacement for Ullrich.