Tour de France to start in Edinburgh in 2027 in 'tremendous honour'

The Tour de France will start in Edinburgh in 2027 in an historic hosting agreement involving the world’s biggest cycling race that is set to deliver a multi-million economic windfall to Scotland.

Cyclists taking part in the 114th edition of Le Tour will set off from the Scottish capital, the announcement delivered by Mark Cavendish, the record Tour stage winner, on Wednesday on the city’s Royal Mile confirmed.

Edinburgh had been chosen to provide a “magnificent backdrop” to the Grand Départ of the men’s race, organisers said, with the event expected to draw massive crowds to the city’s streets.

The event will mark the third time Britain has hosted the start of the world-famous race after cyclists set off from Leeds in 2014 - when the West Yorkshire city overcame an earlier bid by Edinburgh - and London in 2007.

Almost five million spectators were estimated to have watched the men’s race from roadside as it journeyed from Leeds to London in 2014 - a number expected to be beaten in 2027. A report produced in the aftermath had valued the race as worth around £128 million to the local economy.

Further route details for both the men’s and women’s events will be announced in the autumn, but Scotland’s prominent role will be the culmination of 20 years of talks.

Edinburgh will host the 2027 Tour de France Grand Depart | Pauline Ballet/SWpix.com

However, Glasgow, as well as the Lake District, Manchester, and parts of Wales, are expected to feature.

The Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift will both visit the UK in 2027 - the first time both the men’s and women’s Grand Departs will be held in the same country. Scotland, England and Wales will share six stages of the cycling event in total - three each for the men’s and women’s races.

First Minister John Swinney described hosting the start of the Tour de France as a “tremendous honour”.

“We know it is one of the most iconic and inspiring contests in sport, and that Scotland provides the perfect stage for major events,” he said.

“Hosting the Tour promises to be a unique opportunity to showcase our country to its many fans around the world as part of a timeline of incredible sporting events in Scotland from 2026 to 2028.”

The project involves a partnership between bodies such as British Cycling, UK Sport and the UK, Scottish and Welsh governments, all three of which have committed to making funds available to supplement private finance.

Simon Morton, director of events at UK Sport, said: “This will be the biggest free spectator event ever hosted in the UK, offering the public front-row access to world class sport across villages, towns and cities.”

Scottish Cycling chief executive Nick Rennie said: “It’s hard to underestimate the scale of today’s announcement and the impact it will have on cycling in Scotland. For the Tour de France to not only visit, but start in Scotland, is a huge milestone, not only for cycling, but for sport in Scotland.”

Mr Rennie added: “Over the last decade, Scotland has continued to build a reputation as an outstanding major event host, with the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships further enhancing this. What that event 18 months ago did was raise people’s awareness of the different types of cycling available, and that cycling is truly for everyone.

“With the Commonwealth Games returning to Glasgow next summer, and the Tour de France Grand Depart taking place in Edinburgh 12 months later, we really are in a golden era for cycling in Scotland.

“It goes without saying that Scottish Cycling will be doing everything it can to use these iconic moments to get more people on bikes, enjoying our great sport.”

Edinburgh-born cycling professional Sean Flynn described Edinburgh hosting the 2027 start as “massive”.

“You see the impact it has everywhere the Tour goes,” he said. “You saw it in Yorkshire, a few years back, so it will be really special. It will give such a boost to cycling in Scotland and it gives me a lot of motivation to be there, to be part of that.”

Christian Prudhomme, general director of the Tour de France, said: “Why Edinburgh? Because it’s a magical city. You are only 20 minutes away from the city centre and you are in the middle of nowhere. I know because I walked with my daughter and my wife two years ago to the beach – it’s only a 40-minute walk to go to the sea.

“In the Tour de France, what is very important is the helicopter shots. So Edinburgh and Scotland will offer a magnificent backdrop to the tour.

“Le Tour de France is the only sports event that is made also for people who don’t like sport. Because it’s geography, it’s culture, it’s pride. People are proud when they see their home from above.”

The UK is hosting the men’s event for the fifth time – the first was in Plymouth in 1974. The Tour de France Femmes was brought under the same organisation as the men’s race in 2022 and is coming to Britain for the first time.

Bid chair Paul Bush has a long history of bringing major sporting events to the country in his previous roles with Events Scotland, Commonwealth Games Scotland and as chair of the 2023 UCI World Cycling Championships.

“Scotland is known as the perfect stage for events,” he said at an announcement in Edinburgh. “And I think this city is absolutely unequivocal there in terms of the backdrop it can provide. It’s probably one of the finest cities in Europe, if not in the world.

“This will be the largest ever free sporting event to come to the British Isles, and that’s pretty special.”