Tour de France 2026: will Tadej Pogačar equal Eddy Merckx by winning a record fifth yellow jersey?

Tadej Pogačar could equal the overall win record at the Tour de France 2026 by claiming his fifth yellow jersey, emulating greats like Eddy Merckx. The Slovenian could also move up the leaderboard of total stage wins if he adds to his tally of 21. 

The 113th edition of the world’s biggest bike race will start in Barcelona with a mouth-watering team time-trial. Three weeks and 3,300km later, it will return to its traditional finish on the Champs-Élysées three weeks and 3,300km later. 

A standout innovation to the route, which changes every year, is back-to-back finishes on Alpe d’Huez, one of the race’s most famous climbs. 

What is the route of the Tour de France 2026?

Foreign stars of the Tour de France have become increasingly common lately and the Grand Départ in 2026 will be in Spain on 4 July 2026. 

The Spanish capital will host a team time-trial, in which teams set off together in a bid to record the fastest time on the 19km course. Riding time-trial bikes at high speeds in a bunch usually produces explosive and unpredictable action. 

After another two demanding days in Spain, the peloton passes into the French Pyrénees for its first summit finish on Gavarnie-Gèdre on stage six. 

From Bordeaux, there is a succession of flat and rolling days on the race’s route north east to the Massif Central and Vosges mountains. Here, stage 14 from Mulhouse to Le Markstein Fellering is a mountainous day to look out for. 

A rolling 26km individual time-trial follows the second rest day on 20 July – a rare opportunity for the rouleurs or TT specialists to go for a win. A couple of chances for the sprinters precede the first Alpe d’Huez stage. 

Relatively short at 124km, this looks better suited to more explosive climbers. The next day riders will ascend the Alpe from the other side in a monstrously difficult stage. Its 5,600m of elevation gain involves ascents of the Croix de Fer and Galibier.

On the final stage 21, the general classification should be sewn up as the sprinters vie for victory on the Champs-Élysees. 

Which riders should I look out for at the Tour de France 2026?

On past and current form, it’s hard to look past four-time champion Tadej Pogačar for the maillot jaune and overall victory. He won at a canter last time despite a knee injury he managed to keep quiet during the race. It’s expected he will successfully transition from targeting the Spring Classics, such as Milan-San Remo which he won for the first time in March, to stage racing, as he’s done previously. 

However, his main general classification (GC) rival Jonas Vingegaard, himself a two-time champ, looks set to pose a sterner challenge. In preparation for the first Grand Tour of the year, the Giro d’Italia, the Norwegian has shown dominant early-season form, and seems more confident and relaxed in the media. 

The Third Man in this GC battle id Remco Evenepoel, a podium finisher in 2024 and winner of the Tour of Spain. Since switching to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, the Belgian has a stronger team behind him in stage races. His form has generally been good this year too. But the presence of Florian Lipowitz, third at the Tour de France last year, means he faces internal as well as external competition. 

Home hopes

If he races, Paul Seixas could provide something for French fans to shout about. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot won the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift last year, but in the men’s race France has had a barren run since the 1980s. While we wouldn’t expect the 19-year-old to dethrone Pogacar on debut, he already looks the real deal. A podium placing isn’t out of the question. Without Seixas, there’s hope for France in the shape of punchy climbers like Romain Grégoire and Lenny Martinez. 

As has been typical recently, les grosses cuisses or the sprinters will have to fight over crumbs at this year’s Tour de France. Expect Jasper Phillipsen, Tim Merlier and Jonathan Milan to dominate what flat, fast finishers there are. 

Why you should watch the Tour de France 2026

You should watch the Tour de France in 2026 because it looks likely to be one of the most intriguing for years. An innovative route, more competitive GC, serious hopes for the host country, and the prospect of history being made should make for a spectacle. 

Since the French newspaper L’Auto launched the Tour de France in 1903 to sell more copies, four cyclists have won the Tour de France five times:

• Jacques Anquetil (1957, 1961-4)
• Eddy Merckx (1969-1972, 1974)
• Bernard Hinault (1978-9, 1981-2, 1985)
• Miguel Indurain (1991-5)

Disgraced drugs cheat Lance Armstrong was stripped of his seven consecutive victories (1999-2005). 

Having won his fourth title last year, Pogačar could become the fifth to win five this summer. With Vingegaard, Evenepoel and possibly Seixas poised to push him close, his challenge looks tougher than last year, where he breezed to victory. 

Pogačar tends to bag a handful of stage wins every year. By replicating that tally in 2026, he’ll move closer to Mark Cavendish’s stage-win record of 35. At his current rate he could jump from 21 past the Manx Missile in three or four years. Whether he’ll continue that long remains to be seen though. 

It will also be interesting to see whether breakaway riders can reverse the recent decline in wins from reduced groups, and who will emerge the most successful sprinter from the aforementioned Merlier, Milan and Philipsen. 

Where can I watch the Tour de France 2026?

For the first time in decades, the Tour de France will not be shown on terrestrial television in the UK. You’ll only be able to watch it on TNT sports via HBO Max.

In Europe, you generally will be able to follow the Tour on terrestrial TV, for example on France Télévisions in France, as well as Eurosport. This paid-for channel also shows the race in South East Asia.

Meanwhile in Australia, the free-to-air SBS will broadcast the race on TV and stream it live online.

American cycling fans will need a subscription to Peacock while Canadian viewers will have to pay for FloBikes.