Tour de France Absence from ITV: Reasons Explained

For many years, cycling enthusiasts in the UK could count on tuning into the Tour de France for free on ITV. That all changed after the 2025 event when ITV lost the rights to broadcast the race. The Amaury Sports Organisation (ASO) oversees the Tour de France, while France Télévisions handles the television coverage.

ASO sells broadcasting rights to 190 countries, which is a major source of revenue for the Tour. In the UK, TNT Sports/HBO Max now has the broadcasting rights until 2030, meaning viewers will need a subscription to watch live coverage of each stage. However, Channel 5 will be showing free-to-air highlights of the 2026 race and will offer full coverage starting in 2027. They’ve also secured an agreement with TNT Sports to show highlights of other races like the Tour de France Femmes and Vuelta a España this year.

The former ITV commentary team of David Millar, Peter Kennaugh, and Ned Boulting were a fixture for many cycling fans in July and helped inspire generations of cyclists. Although live coverage is no longer free, the former ITV team plans to provide free-to-air commentary for the 2026 race.

In the US, the rights are shared by NBC Sports/Peacock and FloBikes, requiring a subscription for full coverage. Highlights of select stages will be aired for free on NBC Sports. The 2026 Tour de France promises to be an exciting one, with a range of technological and competitive updates. Make sure to check your local listings for how to catch all the action!