For the third time in its history, the Tour de France will start from Spain in 2026. After San Sebastián in 1992 and Bilbao in 2023, Barcelona now has the honor of hosting the Grand Departure. The capital of Catalonia will be the stage for two stages on July 4 and 5, 2026, whose profile was revealed today during a press conference.

The 2026 Grande Boucle will begin with a team time trial, a stage that has not been on the program since 2019. The team time trial will take place entirely in Barcelona, on a route very similar to the opening stage of the 2023 Vuelta. After a start along the seafront, the route will pass particularly near the Sagrada Familia, an emblematic monument of the city. The finale will favor climbers with the ascents of Montjuïc hills (1.1 km at 5.1%) and the Olympic Stadium (800 m at 7%), with a finish at the stadium that hosted the Olympics.

The second day will be hilly, with the group starting from Tarragona for a 178-kilometer stage. After a relatively flat first part along the Mediterranean Sea, the route will become more challenging and hilly starting from the Begues climb (6.1 km at 6.5%), continuing until the arrival in Barcelona. The riders will then complete an urban circuit of 10.3 kilometers three times, with two main difficulties: the climb to Montjuïc Castle (1.6 km at 9.3%) and the Olympic Stadium climb, already tackled the day before, for an identical uphill finish.

The final circuit should bring back good memories for Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), who rode a similar route during the last stage of the 2024 Tour of Catalonia. The Slovenian had then won the sprint at the end of a descent, after climbing the Montjuïc Castle climb six times. This time, the finish will be uphill, which could favor the winner of the last Tour de France and other general classification favorites.

After these two stages, the riders will leave Spain one last time from Granollers, northwest of Barcelona, before heading towards France. The public will be able to follow the group for about a hundred kilometers before they cross the Pyrenees and enter French territory. The route of the third day is still secret, but when arriving in the Pyrenees, it's easy to imagine that the battle will be fought uphill.