Barcelona, July 2, 2026 (AFP) - The Tour de France opens with a short, fast, team time-trial in Barcelona on Saturday, the first round of the battle to decide who will wear the coveted yellow jersey on the Champs Elysees in Paris.
Many of the tougher mountainous stages are packed into the final week, but there will be opportunities to make a difference before then.
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Here, AFP looks at five key stages that will determine who, if anyone, can dethrone reigning champion Tadej Pogacar.
Stage 6: Pau to Gavarnie-Gedre, 186km
Saturday's team time-trial will give the more powerful squads a chance to flex their muscles, while the punchy climbers will come to the fore on the short, steep climbs that close out Sunday's second stage, which also finishes in Barcelona.
But it is the sixth stage, passing through the Pyrenees, which provides the first chance for significant time gaps between overall contenders.
While the final climb is long at 18.7km but not steep (3.7 percent), before then the peloton must scale two behemoths: the Col d'Aspin and Col du Tourmalet.
The latter is 17.1km-long at 7.3 percent and although its summit is 40km from the finish, Thierry Gouvenou, who designed the route, insists that "it packs a serious punch."
Stage 10: Aurillac to Le Lioran, 167km
The day after the first rest day happens to be Bastille Day.
Home riders desperate to win on the national holiday will ensure an enthralling day of racing, while the hilly route, with seven categorised climbs, promises action among the overall contenders.
When a stage last finished at the small ski station in the Massif Central in 2024, Jonas Vingegaard pipped Pogacar, who had attacked on the final climb, in a razor-tight photo finish.
Stage 15: Champagnole to Plateau de Solaison, 184km
This stage will be run a few hours earlier than the World Cup final in the United States.
As an appetiser, though, they do not come much tastier.
The final climb to Plateau de Solaison is brutal at 11.3km and nine percent.
It is one which many riders have already tackled this year in last month's Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes.
Pogacar's team-mate Isaac del Toro won that day on his way to overall victory in the week-long stage race.
He will have some tips to pass on to his team leader.
With the shorter, but steeper, Le Saleve - Col de la Croisette (4.6km at 11.2 percent) just before the riders tackle the final ascent, expect overall hopefuls to leak out of the back of the leading group.
Stage 16: Evian-les-Bains to Thonon-les-Bains, 26.1km time-trial
This 26.1km individual time-trial has three parts: a nine kilometre-long climb, a rapid and technical descent, and then a flat 10km run to the finish.
Three years ago, Vingegaard put more than a minute-and-a-half into Pogacar on a similar-length time-trial en route to defending his Tour title. The gaps in this race against the clock could be also be significant.
Stage 20: Le Bourg-d'Oisans to Alpe d'Huez, 171km
"It's the hardest penultimate stage we've ever designed!" said Tour director Christian Prudhomme of this mountainous run.
On paper it looks torturous with more than 5,450 metres of elevation gain, including four of the toughest climbs on the Tour.
"The idea is that anything could still happen regardless of the gap between the yellow jersey and his rivals," added Prudhomme.
"Because if you're a little bit off on a stage like this, it won't be seconds that you lose."
Before the final climb, which finishes at the top of Alpe d'Huez, there are the back-to-back Telegraphe and Galibier mountains, where, in 2022, Vingegaard's Visma team set about trying to crack Pogacar, who was in the yellow jersey.
Vingegaard and his team-mate Primoz Roglic took it in turns to attack Pogacar, forcing him to repeatedly chase them down.
On the final Col du Granon climb, the Slovenian's legs went and Vingegaard gained almost three minutes and a decisive advantage en route to his first Tour success.
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How To Watch The Tour de France 2026
For Canadian viewers, the Tour de France 2026 is streaming on FloBikes and the FloSports app.
Stage highlights, replays and more breaking news, including recaps and rider interviews, will be on both platforms.
In the United States, the Tour de France will be on the NBC family of networks and will stream daily on Peacock. Select stages will air on local NBC affiliates, while others, plus stage reruns, will be shown on the USA Network.
In February 2023, NBC Sports, Peacock and ASO announced a six-year deal that will keep NBC Sports as the home of the Tour de France in the United States through 2029.
When Does The Tour de France 2026 Start?
The Tour de France 2026 starts July 4 and will conclude July 26.
The schedule includes 21 stages and two rest days (July 13 and July 20).
Every day, the cyclists start together. Every stage varies in distance and physical demand, and the characteristics of each stage determine what type of rider should excel or how the race should finish.
For example, some stages feature flat finishes, and that means the sprinters likely will be battling for those stage wins.
The three weeks of racing across Barcelona and France will feature eight mountain stages, including five summit finishes, seven flat stages, four hilly days, an individual time trial and a team time trial to kick things off on July 4.
How Long Is The Tour de France 2026?
The course for the Tour de France 2026 is 3,333 kilometers or just over 2,071 miles.
The race is 21 stages.
A map of the entire route can be found here.
What Is The Schedule For The Tour de France 2026?
- Stage 1 (TTT) - July 4: Barcelone - Barcelone (19.6km)
- Stage 2 - July 5: Tarragone - Barcelone (168.5km)
- Stage 3 - July 6: Granollers - Les Angles (195.9km)
- Stage 4 - July 7: Carcassonne - Foix (181.9km)
- Stage 5 - July 8: Lannemezan - Pau (158.3km)
- Stage 6 - July 9: Pau - Gavarnie-Gèdre (186.2km)
- Stage 7 - July 10: Hagetmau - Bordeaux (175.1km)
- Stage 8 - July 11: Périgueux - Bergerac (180.4km)
- Stage 9 - July 12: Malemort - Ussel (185.5km)
- Rest Day - July 13: Cantal
- Stage 10 - July 14: Aurillac - Le Lioran (166.6km)
- Stage 11 - July 15: Vichy - Nevers (161.3km)
- Stage 12 - July 16: Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours - Chalon-sur-Saône (179.1km)
- Stage 13 - July 17: Dole - Belfort (205.8km)
- Stage 14 - July 18: Mulhouse - Le Markstein Fellering (155.3km)
- Stage 15 - July 19: Champagnole - Plateau de Solaison (183.9km)
- Rest Day - July 20: Haute-Savoie
- Stage 16 (ITT) - July 21: Évian-les-Bains - Thonon-les-Bains (26.1km)
- Stage 17 - July 22: Chambery - Voiron (174.7km)
- Stage 18 - July 23: Voiron - Orcières-Merlette (185.2km)
- Stage 19 - July 24: Gap - Alpe d'Huez (127.9km)
- Stage 20 - July 25: Le Bourg d'Oisans - Alpe d'Huez (170.9km)
- Stage 21 - July 26: Thoiry - Paris Champs-Élysées (133km)
How Many Teams/Riders Compete In The Tour de France?
Traditionally, there are 22 or 23 teams and up to 184 competitors in the Tour de France. This year, there will be 23 teams.
Here’s the list for 2026:
- Alpecin - Premier Tech
- Bahrain - Victorious
- Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
- Cofidis
- Decathlon CMA CGM Team
- EF Education - EasyPost
- Groupama - FDJ United
- Netcompany INEOS
- Lidl - Trek
- Lotto Intermarché
- Movistar Team
- NSN Cycling Team
- Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team
- Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe
- Soudal Quick-Step
- Team Jayco AlUla
- Team Picnic PostNL
- Team Visma | Lease a Bike
- TotalEnergies
- Tudor Pro Cycling Team
- UAE Team Emirates - XRG
- Uno-X Mobility
- XDS Astana Team
Who Won The Tour de France In 2025?
Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar added to his growing legacy by winning the Tour de France in 2025.
It was his second consecutive victory at the event, and fourth overall (2020, 2021), making him the sixth rider in history to win four times.
Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain all have won five times, while Chris Froome joins Pogačar with four.
On his way to securing the yellow jersey in 2025, Pogačar was the pre-race favorite.
His title defense featured four stage wins (4, 7, 12, 13), and he finished more than four minutes ahead of runner-up Jonas Vingegaard. Florian Lipowitz was third, 11 minutes behind Pogačar, who also won the King of the Mountains jersey.
Pogačar owns five Grand Tour victories overall, including the Giro d’Italia in 2024, which was part of a historic Giro-TDF double, a feat that hadn’t been accomplished since 1998.
In 2026, Vingegaard, a two-time Tour de France winner, will be looking to match the effort after claiming the GC title at the Giro d’Italia in May and becoming the eighth rider to win all three Grand Tours at least one time.
Merckx has the most GC wins in Grand Tours with 11, followed by Hinault, who has 10.
Pogačar has maintained his elite form in 2026 and started the year with four wins in his first five events. He then added four stages wins on the way to the GC crown at the five-stage Tour de Romandie.
The Tour de France 2026 Route Nobody Is Ready For
The Tour de France 2026 is finally here, and the route promises one of the toughest editions in years.
From the opening team time trial in Barcelona to a dramatic finale featuring back-to-back days on Alpe d’Huez, this route is packed with opportunities for attacks, time gaps and mountain battles.
We break down the overall route, key stages, major climbs and what it all means for the expected showdown between Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard in July.
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