Whlle the race has ventured into Italy (2024) and Spain (2023) in recent years, France will be taking center stage as the sole Tour de France venue for the first time since 2020.
The 112th edition will hit the road in Lille in the north of France beginning Saturday, July 5th and wend its way down to the cathedral city of Rouen, then to Bayeux and the Normandy coast, then south to Chinon and Touluse, before looping up and around France's east coast for the big finish in Paris on Sunday, July 27th.
In all, the traditional 21 stages usually cover over 3,600 kilometers (2,237 miles). As usual, each leg of the 2025 race will range from pleasantly flat to treacherously steep and mountainous, including an infamous muscle-burning climb through Mont Ventoux.
Coming off mountain stretches also puts cyclists' descending skills to the test -- so be sure to watch for spills and chills (and dust flying) as riders hit the brakes on the way down!
Meanwhile, keep it here for more updates when the complete TV schedule is announced this summer.
The amazing (bike) race: The infamous muscle-burning climb up Mount Ventoux.
2025 Tour de France on TV
In the U.S. streaming service NBC Peacock will be the official broadcasters throughout the race with additional television coverage from 'mothership' network NBC..
FloBikes usually provides a live stream in Canada.
Across the pond, ITV4 airs live coverage in the UK from every stage of the tour.
Elsewhere in Europe, Eurosport covers the race from start to finish, while in Australia live coverage and next-day highlights are regularly featured on SBS.
Just up ahead, check out the complete route for the 2025 Tour de France and keep it for the US TV broadcast and 'streaming schedule as it is announced:
Date
Stage
TV / Stream / Start Times ET
Sat., July 5
Stage 1 - Lille Métropole > Lille Métropole
Peacock 6:30 AM,, live NBC coverage at 8AM
Sun., July 6
Stage 2 -Lauwin-Planque > Boulogne-sur-Mer
Peacock 6 AM,,NBC highlights at 4PM
Mon., July 7
Stage 3 - Valenciennes > Dunkerque
Peacock 6 AM
Tues., July 8
Stage 4 - Amiens Métropole > Rouen
Peacock 6 AM
Wed., July 9
Stage 5 - Caen > Caen
Peacock 6AM
Thurs., July 10
Stage 6 - Bayeux > Vire Normandie
Peacock 6 AM
Fri., July 11
Stage 7 - Saint-Malo > Mûr-de-Bretagne Guerlédan
Peacock 6:AM
Sat., July 12
Stage 8 -
Saint-Méen-le-Grand > Laval Espace Mayenne
Peacock 6:30 AM
Sun., July 13
Stage 9 - Chinon > Châteauroux
Peacock 6:30 AM
Mon., July 14
Stage 10 - Ennezat > Le Mont-Dore Puy de Sancy
Peacock 6:AM
Tues., July 15
Rest Day - Toulouse
Wed., July 16
Stage 11 - Toulouse > Toulouse
Peacock 6:30 AM
Thurs., July 17
Stage 12 - Auch > Hautacam
Peacock 6:30 AM
Fri., July 18
Stage 13 - Loudenvielle > Peyragudes
Peacock 6:30 AM
Sat., July 19
Stage 14 - Pau > Luchon-Superbagnères
Peacock 6:AM
Sun., July 20
Stage 15 - Muret > Carcassonne
Peacock 6:30 AM, delayed highlights on NBC at 2 p.m.
Mon., July 21
Rest Day - Montpellier
Tues., July 22
Stage 16 - Montpellier > Mont Ventoux
Peacock 6:AM
Wed., July 23
Stage 17 - Bollène > Valence
Peacock 7:AM
Thurs., July 24
Stage 18 - Vif > Courchevel Col de la Loze
Peacock 6:AM
Fri., July 25
Stage 19 - Albertville > La Plagne
Peacock 7:AM
Sat., July 26
Stage 20 - Nantua > Pontarlier
Peacock 6:AM, live coverage on NBC at 8 a.m., highlights on NBC at 2 p.m.
Sun., July 27
Stage 21 - Mantes-la-Ville > Paris Champs-Élysées
Peacock 9:30 AM, highlights on NBC at 2 p.m.
The climactic finish on the Champs Elyssee happens this year on Sunday, July 27, 2025.
All about the Tour de France
Maurice Garin was the winner
in the first race held in 1903.
The first Tour de France was arranged by French newspaperman Henri Desgrange as a publicity stunt for his paper, L'Auto in 1903. The race featured 60 riders covering more than a 1,000 miles. that proved highly popular among spectators along the route .The race was also a huge success for L'Auto whose circulation rose from 25,000 to 65,000 that year.
Except for two World Wars, the Tour de France has been held almost every year since.
While spectacular scandals have rocked the race of late, the Tour de France has been no stranger to poor sportsmanship over the years. In fact, during the early days rampant cheating was common, along with sporadic rioting among spectators who often favored one rider over another.
Today, almost 200 riders make up the 22 teams that participate in the world's biggest annual sporting event covering some 2,000 miles. Throughout the race's 21 stages, the strongest rider is protected by other members of the team through stretches of terrain that vary greatly from flat, to hilly, to extremely steep and mountainous.
Color-coded jerseys signify top racers during the Tour de France, including white for a young emerging star,
red polka dot for the best uphill biker, green for the fastest sprinter, and yellow for the overall leader.
Along the way, riders are rewarded with color-coded jerseys with special significance. The green jersey signifies who's the fastest sprinter. The white jersey goes to the youngest biker, usually an emerging star under 25. The red-and-white polka dot jersey is awarded to the "King of the Mountain" or best uphill climber.
Near the end of the race, the overall leader gets to wear the coveted yellow jersey and to ultimately claim victory -- and the €450,000 euro prize money -- as he crosses the finish line in Paris.
Tour
de France around the Web
Elsewhere on
the Web, get the complete picture of this year's annual Tour de France
with video presentations, photos, up-to-the-minute blog
reports, and more on Tour de France stats, records and history
...
Tour de France 2025 kicks off in Lille in northern Franxe.
Tour de France 2025 - At the official site find the complete route map, news flashes
in real time, plus updated classifications, positions, gaps between
the riders, video and photos of the competition - in English and
French.
