Full route of Tour de France's return to the UK revealed

2027 Tour de France: Full route of famous cycling race's return to the UK revealed This is the first time both the men's and women's Grand Departs will take place in the same country outside of France, with organisers expecting millions of fans to line the streets to watch. Image:All 10 start and finish venues were lit up simultaneously on Thursday evening. Pic: Tour de France Grand Depart 2027 Image:The full route for the men's Tour de France. Pic: Tour de France Grand Depart 2027 Image:The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. Pic: Tour de France Grand Depart 2027 Image:The Tour de France passing through Haworth in West Yorkshire in 2014. Pic: PA Image:Part of the Tour de France took place in London in 2007. Pic: PA Image:Chris Froome, second right, passing Buckingham Palace during the Tour de France in London in 2014. Pic: PA Image:Leeds Civic Hall was lit up on Thursday evening. Pic: Tour de France Grand Depart 2027 Thursday 15 January 2026 18:24, UK The full route of the Tour de France's return to the UK next year has been revealed. The Grand Depart - the start of the competition - will begin in Scotland for the very first time. Cyclists taking part in the 114th edition of Le Tour will set off from Edinburgh on Friday 2 July 2027 and will travel 184km (114 miles) to Carlisle in the opening stage. The competitors will then travel 223km (138 miles) from Keswick to Liverpool the following day, before finishing the UK leg of the world's biggest annual sporting event by completing the 223km (138 miles) between Welshpool and Cardiff on the Sunday. As well as the men's race, the UK will also host the Grand Depart of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. The women's race will kick off in Leeds on Friday 30 July 2027, travelling west and over the Pennines to Manchester. Competitors will then cycle from Manchester to via the Peak District National Park the following day, before concluding with a showpiece stage in London on Sunday 1 August. Sheffield Further details on the London stage of the event will be announced this spring. This is the first time both Grand Departs will take place in the same country outside of France, with organisers expecting millions of fans to line the streets to watch. This is also the first time part of the women's race will take place in the UK, however Britain has hosted two previous Grand Departs for the men's competition - first in 2007 and again in 2014. Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour de France, and Marion Rousse, director of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, welcomed the reveal of the host towns and cities. At a press conference on Thursday, Mr Prudhomme said the organisers "want passion, we want huge crowds, but we want beautiful landscapes, we want outstanding sceneries". The men's opening stage from Edinburgh will head through Midlothian and the Scottish Borders, tackling the steep...

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