Tour de France 2025: main stages and most anticipated cyclists
In Europe, during the summer, there is not a lot of sport going on. Cycling fans, though, can surely be happy: this is their season. Il Giro d’Italia, le Tour de France and la Vuelta a España are run between May and September. The most prestigious of these competitions is, of course, the French one. The 2025 tournament is going to start in Lille, on the 5th of July, and will conclude on the 27th, on the Champs-Élysées. In this focus, we are going to circle out the most interesting stages and the favourites to bring home the Maillot Jaune, or yellow jersey.
The variety of the routes chosen for the Tour, which alternate between flat, hilly and high mountain stages, makes the race unpredictable and exciting, rewarding the most accomplished cyclists and guaranteeing thrills for all fans. However, this also makes life more difficult for those who would like to bet on this sporting event. Whoever would still like to try their luck, can exploit nice bonuses, such as free bets in the UK that allow the bettor to place his or her bet without making an initial investment. That means that it is possible to play without being afraid of losing any pocket money. As they say, it is a win-win situation.
The unmissable stages
The 112th edition of the Tour de France will start inside the country, in the city of Lille. This is something to consider because in recent years La Grand Départ, as people call the first stage, has been outside of France, mainly for sponsorship reasons. The arrival is back in Paris after last year’s closing in Nice, because of the Olympic Games, so the final stage will regain all its glory. However, this is not the round enthusiasts are anxiously waiting for.
The day marked in red on every fan calendar is, obviously, the 22nd of July. History will be made on that fateful day on the Giant of Provence, arguably the most fascinating mountain in France, the Windy Mountain or, as they call it there, le Mont Ventoux. The records for this climb speak for themselves: Marco Pantani, Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador and the whole bunch of immortal climbers recorded memorable times on the 16 kilometres of the climb, where nobody is safe because an attack can come early on as well near the end. This stage is one of the last on the schedule, so we could crown a champion on the mountaintop.
Who are the favourites
In cycling, physical condition is key in order to win a tournament as intense as le Tour de France. This is the reason why we must begin this paragraph by mentioning Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian didn’t take part in the Giro d’Italia and focused entirely on the Tour. He is bound to be more than ready to repeat himself after last year’s triumph. His main opponent would be his longtime rival, Jonas Vingegaard. The Danish seems to be the only one able to compete with Pogacar on the French roads but there may be a third name to be aware of: Remco Evenepoel. The Belgian finished third in 2024 and gives his best every year in France, but his spring was quite bad and he seems out of shape at the moment. He is going to need a nice boost to finish first in Paris.
Other anticipated cyclists are Primoz Roglic, Carlos Rodriguez, Felix Gall, Richard Carapaz, Ben O’Connor and Enric Mas. They aren’t in the same tier as the previous ones but have the talent to win. They’ll need something more though, maybe some help from technology or nutrition techniques, two aspects that are revolutionizing sports. One thing is for certain: the next Tour de France is going to be a blast. We actually cannot wait for it to start.