Saturday sees the start of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, an eight-stage race much better known to most cycling enthusiasts as the Critérium du Dauphiné, which underwent a name change after last year’s event, won by Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG).
First held in 1947, when it was created by the newspaper Le Dauphiné Libéré, the race was known as the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré until 2010, when it was brought under the wing of ASO, organisers of the Tour de France. As the new name suggests, the race route traverses the Avergne-Rhone-Alpes region in France’s south-east, and there’s no shortage of climbing in the parcours, including on some of cycling’s most legendary cols.
The race’s mountainous terrain, history and status as a well-respected WorldTour event, plus its close proximity in the calendar to the Tour de France, makes it a must-watch race in its own right, but especially for fans eager to assess the pre-Tour form of GC favourites. Popularly seen as a warm-up event for the Tour de France, since 2012, the winner has seven times gone on to take victory at the Grand Boucle.
That said, Pogačar is not coming back to defend his title this year, with UAE Team Emirates’ lead rider missing in action at the Tour de Suisse. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) will also be absent, resting up after his recent victory at the Giro d’Italia and preparing for his attempt to achieve a career-defining Giro-Tour double, and Red Bull’s Remco Evenepoel is another notable name not in the frame.
But the line-up remains strong. Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) will be racing, and in buoyant form after outsprinting Pogačar to take an emotional victory in a brutal edition of the Paris-Roubaix race earlier this year.
And, of course, all eyes will be on French teenager Paul Seixas, to see how the prodigiously talented Decathlon rider contends with the likes of Lidl-Trek‘s Juan Ayuso and UAE Emirates-XRG’s Isaac del Toro, ahead of the 19-year-old’s somewhat controversial debut at the upcoming Tour.
Below, Cycling Weekly has compiled everything you need to know about broadcasters and live streams, so you can watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes wherever you are in the world.
Quick guide to watching the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
|
Region |
Broadcasters |
|---|---|
|
UK |
► TNT Sports / HBO Max (£30.99/mon) |
|
USA |
► Peacock ($10.99/mon) |
|
Canada |
► Flobikes (CA$49.99/mon) |
|
Australia |
► SBS (Free) |
|
Free live stream |
► SBS (Australia) |
|
Anywhere |
Watch your usual stream from abroad with NordVPN |
Can I watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes for free?
You can watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes for free in Australia with SBS On Demand.
Additionally, numerous European countries have free coverage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, including France 3 and the FranceTV streaming platform in the host country of France.
In Belgium, Flemish-language VRT – broadcast on the Sporza website – and French-language and RTBF – available online on RTBF Auvio – both have the rights. Those in Spain can watch on RTVE Play, while in Italy it’s on RAI Play.
Coverage is geo-restricted, so if you’re not in any of these countries right now, and these channels are your usual port of call, you’ll need a VPN to get your usual coverage while abroad – more on that below.
Want to know more? We have an explainer on the benefits, costs, and considerations…
– Should I use a VPN to watch cycling?
How to watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes while abroad
Most streaming platforms have geo-restrictions these days, which means they only work in certain countries. But being locked out of the races is a thing of the past thanks to a VPN.
A Virtual Private Network is a piece of internet security software that can alter your device’s location, so you can unblock your usual streaming services, even when you’re abroad.
How to watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in the UK
In the UK, the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes will be available to watch online on TNT / HBO Max.
Both TNT and HBO Max are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and require a subscription.
TNT Sports via HBO Max costs £25.99 a month on a 12-month deal. TNT Sports is £30.99 a month, but is cheaper with certain TV packages. Virgin Media customers, for example, can add it to their bundle for an additional £18 a month. Sky TV customers can do the same for an extra £30 a month. EE mobile customers can purchase TNT Sports as an add-on for £20 a month.
Can I watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in the US and Canada?
In the USA, fans will be able to watch the race on Peacock, which is NBC’s streaming network. You will need the $10.99/month plan to watch.
Canadian fans can watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes live on the Flobikes network. This costs CA$49.99 monthly / CA$203 annually.
Can I watch the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in Australia?
If you’re an Aussie cycling fan you’re in luck – you can watch the race for free on SBS, with free live streaming available on SBS On Demand.
What time is the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes on?
Start times for the UK coverage of the race varies from around midday to 14:30 BST on TNT and HBO Max.
In the USA, Peacock coverage starts at between 7:00 am ET (stage 1) and 9:30 am ET, while Flobikes coverage in Canada begins at 7:00 am EDT
SBS coverage in Australia begins at between 9:10 pm and 11:40 pm AEST daily.
► Cycling TV and streaming guide
What to expect at theTour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
The eight-stage Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes starts out with some stiff climbs and only gets lumpier as it heads from the Auvergne region across to the Alps.
The 2026 race will feature three summit finishes, including climbs of the Grand Colombier and the Plateau de Solaison in the final two days, alongside three lumpy stages, one sprint, and a team time trial stage. The Solaison be be back on screens four weeks later, as climb on tage 15 of the Tour de France.
A team time trial on stage 3 will pit riders against a mostly flat 28.4km course with a couple of 450-metre-plus climbs in the middle. The TTT will follow the format used at Paris-Nice in recent years, where individual times are taken at the finish line, as opposed to as a team.
After that, the race continues to get harder, with summit finishes on the final three stages. Stage 7 looks especially savage, with a Long category-1 climb on Lacets du Grand Colombier (7.7km at 8.4%) and a summit finish on a hors-category climb, an 8.4km haul up Grand Colombier with an average elevation of 10.2%.
Cruelly, the race will culminate with another hors-category climb at the end of stage 8, when riders will finish on the flanks of 1508-metre Plateau de Solaison, ascending for 11.3km at 9.1%.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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