Land of cycling, the Spanish Basque Country is celebrating. After Copenhagen in 2022, the Tour de France started this Saturday from Bilbao, capital of the autonomous community crossed this year by the first three stages of the queen event of world cycling.
If they are not exceptional, the departures of the “Grande Boucle” from abroad are more and more frequent and testify to the popularity of the competition beyond the only borders of France. Broadcast in nearly 190 countries, the three-week race, considered the world’s third largest sporting event after the Olympic Games and the Soccer World Cup, generates a sizeable audience (and the publicity fallout that comes with it) for television networks. . Even if the figure of 3,500 million viewers in all countries is added, a time advanced by the organizer, it is difficult to verify.
The Tour de France, the “cash cow” of ASO
At the head of this great machinery, a private actor: Amaury Sports Organization (ASO), a subsidiary of the Amaury media group, owner of The team. Founded in 1991, ASO has become one of the most renowned organizers of sporting events, with in its portfolio other prestigious events well known to cycling enthusiasts such as La Vuelta (Tour of Spain), Paris-Roubaix, La Flèche Wallonne or the Criterium du Dauphine. The company also excels in other disciplines such as motor sports (Paris-Dakar), running (Paris Marathon), golf and sailing.
But the Tour de France is still by far the flagship of the ASO group. If the organizer remains discreet with his accounts, the turnover generated by the event is estimated to be between 150 and 200 million euros, for a net margin of around 20%. The “Grande Boucle” alone would account for nearly half of ASO’s revenue.
For this expert in sports management, the strength of the organizer, beyond its ability to make the exposure of the event profitable, is to control its costs well. And in particular its considerable logistical and technical costs for a competition that travels every day for three weeks.
Millions invested by communities to host the Tour
Today, ASO employs between 250 and 300 people. But the group calls in an army of temporary workers every year to keep the Tour de France machine running. Certain costs are also left to the local authorities that host a stage: installation of the starting village, development of roads and road signs, security… Expenses that are added to the entrance ticket that is paid to have the privilege of see the ” Grande Boucle” pass through your municipality.
Once again, ASO keeps the precise amounts secret and each candidate city negotiates the final invoice directly with the organizer. On the other hand, the “list price” is the same for all: 80,000 euros to be the starting city of a stage, 120,000 to be the finishing city, and even more to host the Grand Start. For example, the Spanish Basque Country, which hosts the first three stages of the 2023 edition, has a global budget of 12 million euros.
Community checks, however, only account for 10% of ASO’s revenue from the Tour de France, with the majority of its revenue (around 60%) coming from television rights. In France, France Télévisions covers the event, in exchange for a check estimated at around 25 million euros a year.
Like those who follow the event from the roadside, the viewer who watches it in front of the television has nothing to pay, the “Grande Boucle” is broadcast free of charge. And this should not change in the short term, even in the event of a change of station, with the Tour de France being part of the list of 21 major events whose broadcasting must be free, according to the law.
Sponsors bet on the Tour
The rest of the Tour de France’s income comes from sponsors who spend more or less depending on their status. There are technical partners (Norauto, XPO Logistics, etc.), official sponsors (Haribo, XTRA Total), official suppliers (Cochonou, Jules, Le Gaulois, FDJ, Lesieur), official partners (Vittel, Orange, Century 21, etc.) . ). ) and finally the main partners (LCL, E.Leclerc, Skoda, Continental and Krys).
Because the Tour de France is also a great marketing operation. For each of these brands present, the goal remains to be seen. Either through banners along the route or through the emblematic advertising caravan that distributes gifts at each stage to the public present on the edge of the road before the runners pass. But becoming a sponsor of the Grande Boucle has a cost: between 150,000 and 200,000 euros for official sponsors, between 300,000 and 600,000 euros for suppliers, between 1 and 2 million euros for official partners and up to 10 million euros for main partners.
The main partners naturally have the greatest visibility, of course through the caravan, but also thanks to the hospitality facilities located in the cities of departure and arrival, the supply of equipment and the sponsorship of the distinctive jerseys (LCL yellow jersey, E.Leclerc weight jersey, Krys white jersey, Skoda green jersey). For example, Skoda would pay around 3.5 million euros a year to be a major partner in the Tour de France. This entitles it, in particular, to supply all the official cars of the race, that is, more than 250 vehicles in total, both for the organization teams and for the cyclists.
What are the benefits for cities, sponsors… and runners?
But is the game worth it? The longevity of certain sponsors present on the Tour for several years leaves little room for doubt. On the community side, most ensure that the investment is profitable.
According to a study by the firm Protourisme, the Grand Départ of the Vendée cycling event in 2018 generated 38 million euros in immediate economic benefits, in particular tourism, for the department. A year later, the city of Albi had estimated the income linked to the passage of the Tour at 1.5 million euros, for a cost of just over 500,000 euros. One euro invested by the city would thus have represented 3.08 euros in economic benefits.
The benefits for the teams and cyclists are more discussed while the Tour represents “a monumental cost for the teams at a technical level,” says Lionel Maltese. The budget of the participating teams is based fundamentally on sponsorship and very little on the participation fees paid by the organizer, which some denounce.
On a day-to-day basis, the teams also lament the low bonuses granted to the riders and teams that stand out in the Tour de France: 500,000 euros for the yellow jersey, 200,000 euros for second place in the general classification (then decreasing bonuses up to 3800 euros for the tenth), 11,000 euros for a stage winner, 25,000 euros for the green jersey and the weight jersey…
A total of 2,282 million euros are paid to the actors in the race. “Not even half of the margin is redistributed to athletes,” confirms Lionel Maltese, who compares it with the Roland-Garros tennis tournament whose “monetary prize” was set this year at 49.6 million euros for a gross box of more than 100 million. euro
Source: BFM TV
