The WorldTour’s biggest races happen in Europe, no questions asked. No, not mostly in Europe—overwhelmingly in Europe! Let’s explore why, and whether that’s likely to change in the future.
Why are most cycling races in Europe?
From the Tour de France, to the cobble classics of Belgium, to the mountain stages of of Giro d’Italia… these are some of cycling’s most prestigious events, and they’re essentially its entire infrastructure. Still, new fans of the sport might wonder why the WorldTour doesn’t travel the world like the name suggests, or even other similar leagues like Formula 1.
The answer comes down to history, logistics, and money, and mostly in that order.
The history of European road cycling.
Origins are a hard thing to get away from, and for the case of cycling, its roots are firmly planted in the European continent.
Road racing as a professional sport was invented in Europe, with Liège-Bastogne-Liège, one of the oldest current races, launching in 1892. The Tour de France quickly followed in 1903. These competitions had their heart in newspaper promotions, designed to build national identity around this new sport. As cycling grew, it became a part of the culture before anyone even thought to export it to other places.
The head start in Europe has created something self-reinforcing with time. In Belgium, France, and Spain, cycling is a more mainstream sport, with millions of roadside fans attending the top races. Local governments also have decades of experience (and public support) managing the start/finish atmosphere and necessary road closures. Plus, European teams are mostly sponsored by European brands targeting European consumers. This whole system feeds into itself, continuing to give the sport of cycling a Euro-centric feel.
Can this change?
For now, it’s hard to get away from history. With more international brands sponsoring cycling teams, it’s possible that the sport is reaching a broader audience. But whether the actual racing will follow to more distant locales, or whether the international audience will have to settle with exploring France, Spain, and the rest of the EU through a screen from afar, is still to be seen.
Embed from Getty ImagesA logistics problem: how does an entire team (and its equipment) move across continents?
Getting a WorldTour team to a race isn’t as simple as booking flights for a football team.
Equipment is a huge concern when racing outside of Europe. After all, each team travels with 30+ bikes, hundreds of wheelset calibrated for different use cases and conditions, and usually massive team buses that they typically use as a “headquarters” while racing.
In Europe, these big buses can drive from race to race. To compete in North America or Asia, teams either pay enormous air-freight costs to ship most of their equipment or make do with rented alternatives… it’s not logical in a sport where marginal gains do so much to determine results.
What about the physical toll? For professional riders, they have to compete 80 or more days per year, in a season calendar squeezed between February and October. Long-haul flights might disrupt their sleep and recovery to some extent. For others it might not make a difference, but if riders are already pushing to the limit and managing the cumulative fatigue of a full season, time in transit might really start to affect their form at the next race.
Can decentralized team bases solve cycling’s travel logistics?
While some of these logistical problems are solvable, there isn’t momentum right now to make changes here. Unless cycling started having a significant portion of races on another continent— enough to make it worthwhile for teams and top stars to travel enmasse— it doesn’t make sense for now.
The issue is constant back and forth travel. If a team “set up camp” on another continent, there would need to be quite a few races in that location to make it worth their while!
Embed from Getty ImagesEconomic challenges in a sport that already runs on a tight budget?
Thinking purely from a financial perspective, there’s probably even lower momentum for making a change than when you consider logistics alone.
Races outside Europe are very expensive to run. Organizers can typically cover travel and accommodation for 18 to 22 professional teams, but this can run into the millions of dollars range before a single rider even gets on their bike at the start. Without a major sponsor or some kind of government or UCI subsidy, the math rarely works out.
Why the Tour of California was cancelled.
This was a genuinely popular race in its time, and it’s also an example of what happens when the money isn’t there.
In the end, it folded because the financial model couldn’t sustain itself… it was simply too difficult to recruit the top talent year after year and still turn profit, or even break even. If you compare that to a Belgian spring classic, where teams are already nearby, fans show up without tickets, and the whole thing costs a fraction of an overseas event, the problem becomes pretty clear.
Will cycling ever follow a global model?
It’s likely that things will change, slowly but surely, and cycling will become a more global sport.
The 2025 Road World Championships in Rwanda showed that the sport can succeed far outside of its traditional geography. Additionally, overseas races like the Tour Down Under in Australia have built a real audience. In the case of the TDU, it capitalizes on having a unique added value, happening outside of the regular season.
If other races can find similar special value, then maybe they can also find paths to success: financial, logistical, and cultural.
The UCI itself has pushed for more global events over time, with mixed results. The structural barriers surrounding non-European racing aren’t insurmountable… they’re just more expensive and complicated. Potential solutions on the table are varied. For example, a redesigned calendar that groups overseas races into “continental blocks” (so teams aren’t constantly in transit) could make globalization more practical. Cheaper air freight, along with other ways to store, borrow, or use equipment overseas, would help, too.
Until then, the Tour de France and the European races will remain what they’ve been for over a century: the center of professional cycling. Everything else will exist on the periphery, but who knows? Maybe one of the global racing events starting now will become a big part of the sport in the future.
Cycling has deep roots, and pulling them up is a slow process. Let’s see if fresh new places to grow make a difference!
Embed from Getty ImagesDo you think WorldTour cyclists should race more outside of Europe? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments or on social media! ★
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