How the Tour de France Makes Money: The Business Behind Cycling's Greatest Race

The peloton thunders through a sleepy French village, 184 riders from 23 teams move as one fluid organism across cobblestones worn by centuries of history. Spectators line the roadside, five deep, their cheers of “Allez, Allez, Allez” echoing as the world's greatest cyclists chase glory over 3,338 kilometres and 21 days of racing across French terrain.

This is the Tour de France in all its brutal beauty, where careers are made and shattered on the merciless slopes of Alpe d'Huez, where legends like Eddy Merckx earned his fearsome nickname "The Cannibal", and where quiet Australian Cadel Evans won in 2011.

For three weeks each July, the race transforms French streets into a stage where modern gladiators like Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar battle for cycling immortality, while their suffering is broadcast to 190 countries and a global audience of 3.5 billion.

But beneath the romance, raw athleticism, and a complex history lies a remarkable business story. What began in 1903 as a desperate publicity stunt by struggling French newspaper L'Auto has evolved into one of sport's most sophisticated commercial machines. The race, which was once designed solely to sell newspapers, now generates around $150 million annually for Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the French company that owns this cycling empire. A feat even more impressive as the race is held annually, for less than 3 weeks.

However, the paradox is striking: the most well-attended sporting event on the international calendar doesn't sell a single ticket, yet it generates millions in a matter of weeks.

So let’s answer a simple question. How did a free roadside spectacle become such a commercial juggernaut?

Who owns the Tour?

To understand the Tour's money machine, you need to know who's pulling the strings. Meet the Amaury family. Through their subsidiary ASO, they control every commercial breath the Tour takes.

But ASO isn't just about cycling. This €220-275 million revenue juggernaut orchestrates a portfolio of sporting events. Beyond the Tour, they own Paris-Nice (cycling's "Race to the Sun"), the gruelling Paris-Roubaix, and the newly launched Tour de France Femmes, which has already become women's cycling's premier event.

The Amaury empire's origins are steeped in the shadows of World War II. During the Nazi occupation, Émilien Amaury, a French publishing magnate, was given contracts to print propaganda for the Pétain regime, which was running Vichy France under German occupation. The counter narrative, which shines him in a better light, is that he used his firm's privileged access to rationed printing supplies to covertly print resistance materials.

The original L'Auto newspaper, which had created the Tour de France in 1903, was shuttered after the war due to its collaboration with the German occupiers. Into this vacuum stepped an unlikely alliance: Jacques Goddet. L'Auto's former editor, who had supported the Résistance by allowing covert printing of pamphlets with the newspaper's paper and plant, was allowed to launch L'Équipe ("The Team") in 1946. 

A condition was that L'Équipe ditched L'Auto's distinctive yellow paper, so white was used instead. However, the Tour’s famous yellow jersey, or "Maillot Jaune", was chosen in 1919 and remains to this day an artifact of the original yellow paper. 

Meanwhile, Émilien Amaury founded Le Parisien Libéré in 1944 alongside other resistance fighters, capitalising on his wartime positioning to build a media empire from the ashes of occupied France. In 1964, Amaury bought L'Équipe, regaining control of the Tour. 

When Émilien died in a horse riding accident in 1977, a long legal battle over the inheritance ensued. Still, the empire eventually passed to his son Philippe, who would modernise and expand the business until he died in 2006. Today, the family continues to control this sporting juggernaut, their wartime origins a distant memory overshadowed by yellow jerseys and the success of the Tour.

Revenue Breakdown

Strip away the romance of the peloton, and the Tour reveals itself as a masterclass in monetising attention. The reality is that the race is only three weeks long, and ASO needs to maximise profit from this time. 

The race that costs nothing to watch live generates its fortune through a deceptively simple three-pronged revenue model that transforms spectacle into serious money.

Television rights form the golden backbone, delivering over half of ASO's annual Tour revenue. When 190 countries tune in to watch riders suffer up mountain passes, each broadcast deal is millions flowing into ASO's coffers. 

Corporate sponsorship provides the second major revenue stream, with multinational brands paying handsomely to associate themselves with cycling's most prestigious platform.

From the caravan of promotional vehicles that precedes the race to the branded barriers lining every mountain stage, the Tour has become a 3,338-kilometre billboard that reaches billions of eyeballs across the globe.

It’s important to note, though, that the sponsors on the riders' team jerseys are not included in this. That revenue goes straight to the teams, and that's why it’s so important that these teams make the marque races, and then have riders that spend time in front of cameras. It’s not unknown for a rider who has little chance of winning a stage to attack early and form a breakaway. The cameras always stay with these ambitious riders and the team sponsors get plenty of eyeballs on their logos.

The final piece might surprise you: French towns and cities compete to pay ASO fees to be included in the race, often exceeding €100,000. Add modest merchandising revenues, and you have a business model that generates between $60-150 million annually from three weeks of racing. 

Television Rights: The Golden Goose

Television broadcast rights form the backbone of Tour de France revenue, accounting for approximately 50-55% of total income. ASO has masterfully monetised the race's global appeal, selling broadcast rights to roughly 190 countries worldwide. 

In France, public broadcaster France Télévisions pays around €25 million annually for rights that now extend through 2030. The European Broadcasting Union has secured a comprehensive rights package covering both the men's and women's Tours through 2030, allowing public broadcasters across Europe to show the race free-to-air, while Eurosport maintains pan-European pay-TV and streaming rights.

The American market represents another significant revenue stream. NBC Sports' current agreement designates Peacock as the exclusive U.S. home of the Tour from 2024 through 2029, with select stages simulcast on the NBC network. This shift towards streaming platforms reflects broader industry trends and helps ASO tap into younger, international audiences. 

However, not all markets are moving in the same direction. In the UK, live free-to-air coverage on ITV will end in 2025, with Warner Bros Discovery (Eurosport/TNT Sports) holding exclusive rights from 2026-2030. 

This means British viewers will need to pay for Discovery+ or TNT Sports to watch the race live, potentially missing future British victories like those of Wiggins or Thomas.

Sponsorship and Advertising: The Colourful Money

Sponsorship and advertising contribute approximately 40-45% of the Tour's revenue, creating a vibrant ecosystem of corporate partnerships. The most visible sponsors are those associated with the classification jerseys: the yellow, green, white, and polka-dot jerseys that have become iconic symbols of the race. 

When Peter Sagan dominated the green jersey competition for seven consecutive years (2012-2018), Škoda's investment in that sponsorship delivered unprecedented global exposure.

Major Jersey Sponsorships

Le Crédit Lyonnais (LCL), a prominent French bank, has sponsored the yellow jersey since 1987, and is now paying approximately $12 million annually for the right. For LCL, it’s a matter of national pride to be associated with France’s greatest sporting event. 

The Caravan

One aspect of sponsorship that isn’t covered by the broadcast, but helps activate the millions of spectators that watch the tour in person is the Tour caravan. 

Each year, approximately 33 brands pay between €250,000-€600,000 each to join the colourful procession that precedes the race, distributing millions of promotional items to spectators in a procession that stretches 10 km. You’ll often see fans on the side of the road with sponsored hats, equipment and merchandise. The caravan has probably given them out.

This unique marketing opportunity allows consumer brands to reach millions of fans in a festival-like atmosphere, creating the party environment that makes stages like Alpe d'Huez so memorable for both riders and spectators.

Caravan Economics

In total, ASO works with over 40 sponsors, generating an estimated $80-90 million annually from these partnerships. The sponsorship model's strength lies in its multi-year contracts, providing revenue predictability that helps ASO plan long-term investments in the race.

Host Cities: A Modest but Reliable Stream

While host city fees represent only about 5% of total Tour revenue, they provide a steady income stream. 

Each stage start town (where a stage starts) pays approximately €90,000, while finish towns pay around €130,000. 

These fees help ASO cover local services and logistics and guarantee that the town shows up several times on the broadcast, boosting its profile for tourism. Of course, the towns also benefit from an influx in tourism during the Tour as spectators flock to catch a glimpse of the peloton. 

Host City Fee Structure

Grand Départs command much higher fees; Florence paid €3.0 million to host the 2024 opening stage. These premium prices reflect the massive tourism and economic benefits that hosting the Tour brings to regions, though those broader economic impacts don't directly benefit ASO. The economic boost to regions can be substantial, as seen when Yorkshire hosted the Grand Départ in 2014, generating an estimated £102 million for the local economy. A Grand Départ is where the race kicks off for the year, and more often than not, these will be in countries outside France. 

Digital Evolution and Future Revenue Streams

ASO has increasingly focused on digital media and technological innovation to enhance the viewing experience and attract new audiences. 

In 2024, the Tour recorded over 100 million website visits and roughly 1.6 billion social media impressions, alongside a record 1 billion TV viewing hours. 

The rise of social media has transformed how fans engage with the race. Cyclists themselves are becoming famous in their own right with the rise of social media. The major difference, though, is that it’s usually the teams that invest and capture the value of these individuals, rather than the major races like the Tour.

Digital Engagement Metrics (2024)

Strategic partnerships with technology companies like Capgemini (through 2029) are focused on increasing fan engagement through apps and data analytics. 

ASO has also partnered with fitness app Strava to create Tour content hubs, while annual video game releases and extensive social media presence help build the brand among younger demographics.

Netflix's "Tour de France: Unchained" documentary series (2022-2024) also provided a way in for new viewers to understand the sport. The series showcased personalities like Wout van Aert and provided intimate looks at the pressure faced by riders like Primož Roglič, demonstrating the potential for premium content partnerships. 

While these digital initiatives don't yet rival TV rights and sponsorship revenue, they're crucial for long-term growth and audience development.

The Future of Tour Monetisation

The Tour's business model has evolved significantly over the past decade, becoming more global and digital while maintaining its core revenue pillars. Long-term contracts with broadcasters and sponsors provide stability, while digital innovation and merchandise are the next horizon of new revenue opportunities.

ASO's strategy focuses on protecting the race's accessibility; spectators still watch for free, while maximising commercial opportunities through premium partnerships and technological enhancement. This balance between public access and commercial success has made the Tour de France one of the more sustainable and profitable enterprises in sports, especially considering it lasts only 22 days.

As viewing habits continue to shift towards streaming and digital platforms, ASO's challenge will be to increase revenue growth through investments in the viewing experience while preserving the Tour's unique character. 

The first Tour began as a publicity stunt to sell newspapers, which begs the question: Who’s starting the next Grand Tour?