5 to show Tour de France free-to-air

5 and TNT Sports have agreed a multi-year partnership for the former to show Tour de France highlights free-to-air. 

5 will air highlights of the Tour de France from its depart on 4 July this summer, followed by the Vuelta a Espana and Giro d’Italia later in the year. Sports presenter and journalist Rebecca Charlton will front its coverage. TNT Sports will continue to show every minute of live action from all three tours, and you can read about its plans here. 

5’s deals with TNT Sports run until the end of 2028 for the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, while it has the Giro d’Italia until at least 2029. The pair came to an agreement after a competitive tender process. 

In addition to highlights, for the 2027 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes Grand Depart, which will take place across the UK, 5 will show the action live. 

Reemah Sakaan, president of 5, said: “The Grand Tours are the most prestigious cycling events in the world, watched and adored by millions, and we are delighted that 5 will be their new free-to-air home in the UK. Our daily highlights show for the Tour de France will be available to everyone at 7pm each evening this July and we’ll also have daily highlights through both the Vuelta a Espana and the Giro d’Italia for the next three years, plus next year we’ll have live coverage of the Tour de France’s historic return to the UK. 

“The Tour de France kicks off an incredible summer of sport on 5, adding to the rapidly expanding range of premium sport we have for people to watch, including the best of the action from the Commonwealth Games this summer. This new deal with TNT Sports reflects our long-term commitment to bringing brilliant coverage of the world’s best sporting events to millions of viewers and providing access to premium audiences for advertisers.”

Scott Young, EVP, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe, said:  “This partnership with 5 represents a major step forward in expanding the reach of elite cycling across the UK. As the Home of Cycling, we are committed to bringing fans closer to the biggest races in the world across both men’s and women’s cycling, and this agreement ensures even more viewers can experience the drama, emotion and storytelling that define Grand Tour racing.

“By combining a strong free-to-air highlights offering with our comprehensive live coverage, we are delivering unprecedented access to the sport across every platform. Cycling is one of the most compelling sports in the world, featuring extraordinary athletes and unforgettable moments, and it’s important that those stories are shared with the widest possible audience.

“Expanding reach and engaging new audiences across our rights portfolio remains a key strategic priority, and partnerships such as this play an important role in achieving that ambition.”

Charlton said: “It’s fantastic news that the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana will return to terrestrial television with highlights on 5 this summer and I am delighted to be able to tell the world that I will be the host. 

“It’s an absolute dream to have the opportunity to bring the racing to life for all of the cycling fans out there as well as guiding some new viewers along for the ride. We’ll be bringing highlights of all of the action as well as telling the stories around the racing and I for one, cannot wait.”