'Entertaining racing, exceptional backdrops, enthusiastic crowds' – Tour of Britain to return to Yorkshire

The Tour of Britain will return to Yorkshire this September, with another stage being planned to take place amid the afterglow of Britain hosting the Tour de France Grand Départ in the summer of 2027.

York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority has partnered with British Cycling to bring elite racing back to the county for 2026 and 2027, after Yorkshire was absent from the men’s Tour of Britain route in 2025.

The newly inked proposal will see North Yorkshire hosting a full stage of the men's Tour of Britain in 2026, with another stage planned for 2027, which will take place just a few weeks after the eagerly expected Grand Départ for the Tour de France has swept across the UK, albeit with the men’s route skirting around the county that locals like to call ‘God’s Own Country’.

In 2027, the three-stage curtain-raising ride for the 114th edition of the Tour de France will start in Scotland, leaving from Edinburgh on 2 July and heading south into northern England, passing along the western side of the country, through Carlisle, Keswick and Liverpool, before crossing into Wales and coming to an end in Cardiff on 4 July.

Due to take place almost a month later, the route of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift features plenty of Yorkshire, however, with the action starting in Leeds on 30 July and the peloton threading through Sheffield before heading south to finish in London.

The white-rose county was setting for the spectacularly successful 2014 Grand Départ, when a sun-splashed weekend saw an estimated 2.5 million cycling fans line roadsides along a route that passed through Leeds, Harrogate, Sheffield and York to see stars including Mark Cavendish and (who crashed out on the Saturday) and ultimate winner of that year’s Tour, Italian rider Vincenzo Nibali (XDS Astana).

The Tour of Britain stages have been secured with £350,000 of mayoral investment funding, while extra costs for elements including road closures and traffic management (expected to total £400,000) being split between the local authorities involved. However, organisers say each stage of the Tour of Britain can generate between £2m and £12m for the local economy of the areas it passes through.

A spokesperson from British Cycling has said that more details about venues and host locations for the upcoming Tour of Britain will be announced in the coming weeks, so watch this space.

“We are delighted to [be] agreeing this partnership with the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority and bringing the Lloyds Tour of Britain to the region over the next two years," said Jonathan Day, Director of Events at British Cycling Ventures.

"We have seen some exceptional racing in North Yorkshire over the last few years, most recently with the women’s race starting at the Forestry England site of Dalby Forest in 2025. The area brings entertaining racing for the riders, exceptional backdrops for broadcast, and enthusiastic crowds across the route. We are looking forward to working with partners across 2026 and 2027.”

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