Last Friday, the BBC announced that the Grand Départ of the men’s Tour de France is set to return to Great Britain in 2027, with ‘well-placed sources’ saying an official announcement could come as early as next month.
As the story gathered pace over the weekend, more snippets were leaked: Edinburgh under consideration to host the Grand Départ; three stages to be split across Scotland, Wales and England; Leeds pencilled in to host the Tour de France Femmes opening stage.
As a road cycling fan, the news that the world’s biggest races will likely return to my relative doorstep should fill me with joy.
My gateway experience into the sport’s professional side was standing 10-deep and craning my neck as the London 2012 Olympics men’s road race whizzed past near Hyde Park Corner. I’ve been hooked ever since – even if the sight of the breakaway led by Alexandre Vinokourov and not Team GB teeing up a Mark Cavendish gold medal left me feeling slightly flat.
But the Tour coming to town is accompanied by a significant price tag, as I found out when putting together a long read that delved into the cost of hosting the world’s biggest annual sporting event. It’s an investment that should be spent elsewhere if those holding the purse strings truly want to promote and grow road cycling long-term in the UK.
A multi-million-pound decision
The Tour de France organiser, Amaury Sports Organisation (A.S.O), keeps the cost of hosting a Tour de France stage start or finish under wraps. However, a spokesman told Accounting and Business magazine in 2023 that “start cities pay €90,000 [$97,000] fees and arriving cities pay €130,000 [$140,000].”
When it comes to the opening stage, my investigation last year found that figure increases significantly. The Italian city of Florence forked out €3 million to host the 2024 Tour de France Grand Départ, with an additional €2 million spent on security, improving road surfaces, crowd management, press and marketing, and any side events.
It was the same story when the Tour last visited the UK in 2014 – with the hosting costs of £4.2 million for the three stages rising to £29.4 million when everything else was totalled up. Factor in inflation and this outlay is only going to have increased by 2027.
If that sounds like a lot for UK Sport, cash-strapped councils and governmental departments to cough up, the same organising committees would point to the economic benefit of having the Tour visit. There was a net gain of almost £100 million, according to the Three Inspirational Days report into the 2014 Grand Départ.
But while it makes economic sense and is a boost for tourism and the tax man, the activity at the heart of it – road cycling – seems to have been forgotten by those in charge, in pursuit of promised pounds.
Top-heavy investment
The word ‘legacy’ will be thrown around in the build-up to a UK Grand Départ, with promises of improved cycling infrastructure, lasting benefits to communities and experiences that will inspire the next generation of British riders.
But any of those motivated to saddle up after watching Pogaçar, Pidcock and co. rattle down the cobbles of Edinburgh’s Old Town will encounter a very different domestic racing scene and pathway to the sport’s top than when Britain last hosted the Tour in 2014.
Back then, British Cycling-backed events and teams were riding a wave of popularity post-London 2012 and Bradley Wiggins’ Tour de France win. Even the national racing calendar was growing. Enthusiasm was high and the Tour’s visit even led to the founding of another professional race – the three-day Tour de Yorkshire.
Today, in a post-pandemic world, the opposite is true. Last year’s open category of British Cycling’s National Road Series witnessed only five races (down from 10 in 2019), while the six-race women’s contest has also lost two in that timeframe.
The Great Britain Cycling Team Senior Academy – the team where Geraint Thomas, Mark Cavendish and Ian Stannard cut their teeth – was shuttered due to a shortfall in funding, while the UK’s last two remaining UCI Continental teams, Saint Piran and Trinity Racing, were also wound down at the end of last season.
Even at the top, things looked uncertain, with the future of the UK’s premier stages races – the rebranded Tour of Britain Men and Tour of Britain Women – on tenterhooks until British Cycling stepped in after the previous promoter went into liquidation.
Focus on the foundations
A lack of funding is the root cause of the national scene's woes. This begs the question, why is money being splashed out on attracting the sport’s big names when the domestic scene is on its knees?
Surely, funding body UK Sport would be better off focusing on the foundations of UK cycling, shoring up road cycling’s future in the UK, rather than lining A.S.O’s already bulging pockets.
While the economic returns might not be as quick, the money would go a lot further, supporting cycling in the UK for years to come rather than three days of racing that will be old news as soon as the Tour caravan crosses the Channel from stage four onwards.
There’s no denying that it’s a unique experience to watch the world’s best riders tearing it up on your local lanes, but without the grassroots and road-cycling pyramid, there will be no clear pathway for the future Tom Pidcocks stood cheering on the roadside.
