The Tour de France is the biggest road cycling race. The second Grand Tour of the season, which is three weeks long, features 21 days of racing (known as stages) and two rest days. At its finish, the overall (general classification) winner is awarded the iconic yellow jersey.
But it’s not as simple as that. Within the race are subplots and constant twists and turns, with a further three jerseys (sprinter, king of the mountain and youth) being contested. Each day has its ebbs and flows as riders target individual glory while trying to evade the pursuing peloton.
Reportedly watched by 3.5 billion people around the world, its appeal extends beyond the traditional cycling fan base, as people tune in to watch the daily dramas unfold against a picturesque and ever-changing backdrop of France.
If you’re one of those who might be tuning into the Tour for this first time, you’re in luck. Ahead of the start of its 112th edition, we’ve pulled together a beginner’s guide of teams, tactics, favourites and phrases that will help you get your head around what you’re watching on screen.
This is the 112th edition of the Tour de France and the 106th year the yellow jersey has been presented to the overall race winner. Founded in 1903 by a newspaper to increase its sales, Le Tour is now one of the greatest annual sporting events in the world, with 12 million spectators lining the roadside during the three weeks, in addition to all those watching on at home.
Cycle racing is one of the oldest sports around
© Nationaal Archief
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2025 Tour de France race route
Starting in Lille on July 5, the 2025 Tour de France race route will remain completely in France for the first time since 2020, with recent Grand Departs including Florence, Bilbao and Copenhagen. The route winds its way 3,338.8km around the country in 21 stages, which breaks down into seven flat stages, six hilly stages, six mountain stages and two individual time trials, finishing in Paris on June 27.
Jai Hindley climbs the Col du Noyer during the 2024 Tour
© Kristof Ramon/Red Bull Content Pool
The final stage returns to the cobbled circuit of the Champs-Elysées after a break in Nice in 2024 because of the Paris Olympics, and will be fiercely contested by the sprinters while the yellow jersey isn’t contested, so its winner can treat it as a procession and celebration of their achievements.
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What the coloured jerseys mean
While each of the 21 stages has its own winner, prize money and points up for grabs, five competitions run concurrently throughout the Tour de France – the general classification, youth, points, king of the mountains (KOM) and teams. The first four are awarded a special jersey, with that competition’s leader wearing it on the next day’s stage, while the leading team can choose to wear yellow helmets and have yellow race numbers.
Nico Denz rides for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe at Tour de France 2024
© Kristof Ramon/Red Bull Content Pool
The general classification is arguably the main competition of the Tour de France, and its leader is awarded the famous yellow jersey.
How to secure the yellow jersey: Presented to the rider with the lowest cumulative time, the GC is contested by the strongest all-round riders who can generally excel in the mountainous stages while minimising time losses in individual time trials. Tadej Pogacar is the most recent winner and is targeting his fourth title this year.
The youth competition follows the same format as the GC, but is limited to riders who will be aged 25 and under at the end of 2025
How to secure the white jersey: Introduced in 1975, the white jersey is a sign of a rider with promise and potential, and can sometimes be won by the overall general classification winner – as shown by Egan Bernal (2019) and Tadej Pogacar (2020, 2021). Remco Evenepoel is the most recent winner, and while the Belgian will be targeting the yellow jersey this year, the 25-year-old is still eligible to defend his white jersey.
The points jersey is green in colour and is worn by the rider who has accumulated the most points.
How to secure the green jersey: Points are awarded for the first 15 places on each stage, while the amount of points on offer vary depends on the type of stage – with 50 awarded for winning a flat stage, while only 20 are awarded for coming first in a mountain stage. Each day’s racing also includes an intermediate sprint where points are also awarded for the first 15 riders. Generally contested by the out-and-out sprinters, the competition can sometimes be won by riders who get in each days breakaway and are able to contest hilly finishes – as Wout van Aert managed in 2022.
The red and white polka dot jersey:
The leader of the mountains classification gets to wear the red and white polka dot jersey, and the race’s out-and-out climbers contest it. While it does work on a similar format to the points competition, specific KOM points are awarded to riders who lead that day’s stage as they cross the peaks of categorised climbs.
How to secure the polka dot jersey: The most points on offer (20) is for leading over a hors categorie (HC) climb, while leading over a fourth categorie climb will only score you one point.
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe at the Tour de France 2024
© Kristof Ramon/Red Bull Content Pool
Finally, the team competition is based on the cumulative time of each team’s fastest three riders.
There are a total of 184 riders in 23 teams for the 2025 Tour de France – an increase on the 22 teams from the last edition. Each team is made up of eight riders who are supported by an army of background staff, including mechanics, soigneurs (assistants), medics, chefs and physios. A Director Sportif – the head of the business – is in charge of each team and follows the race in a team car, dictating tactics on the road and relaying information between riders and support staff. Each team has two cars that follow the race, and each can offer support on the road, including water, food and mechanical assistance (including a whole new bike) in the event of an issue.
Riders wear an earpiece so that they can hear the instructions from their Director Sportif and can communicate with other riders. Some tactics will have been rehearsed and planned, while others will be split-second calls either dictated by the Director Sportif or decided by the riders on the road.
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Tour de France etiquette
While there is an extensive list of official dos and don’ts, there are also unwritten rules of the road based on sporting behaviour and traditions that are adhered to by all riders (most of the time…). The main one is to never take advantage of another’s mechanical or crash, but it extends to using the toilet (if one rider needs to go, they all go), sharing food and water if a rival needs it, and letting a rider ‘lead’ the race if passing through their hometown or it’s their birthday.
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe are a TdF staple team
© Joerg Mitter/Red Bull Content Pool
The Tour de France has fostered a rivalry for the ages since 2021, with Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar sharing two titles each. Pogacar has won the last two editions, as well as the Covid-delayed 2020 race, and swerved defending his Giro d’Italia title this year to focus solely on winning a fourth yellow jersey. Vingegaard, meanwhile, has only entered three races in 2025, including the Tour de France warm-up, the Criérium du Dauphiné, where he finished second in the GC behind his Slovenian rival.
Wout Van Aert is always a threat for stages wins at the Tour de France
© Kristof Ramon/Red Bull Content Pool
Wout van Aert celebrating the green jersey victory after the Tour de France
© Kristof Ramon / Red Bull Content Pool
The Belgian dominated the competition in 2022 while helping Vingegaard to the overall, and will be looking to repeat the feat this July. The 30-year-old has already raced the Giro d’Italia this year and looked back to his best, winning one stage and playing a crucial role in team-mate Simon Yates’ pink jersey-winning attack on stage 20.
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A Tour de France dictionary
La Grande Boucle: The big loop. An affectionate name for the Tour de France.
Maillot jaune: Yellow jersey. Also used to refer to the rider wearing the yellow jersey, as in ‘the yellow jersey is 30 seconds behind the front group.’
Lanterne rouge: The last rider. The translation means ‘red face’ presumably because of the embarrassment of being last, but being dead last is lucrative as it has a celebrity of its own that can be traded against at post-tour races and events.
Tête de la Course: Head of the race. Simply meaning the rider or riders who are leading on that stage. If the yellow jersey holder is not in the front group, you can bet they will be keeping a careful eye on who is and how far ahead they are getting.
Chute! Chute!: Crash! No one ever wants to see riders hurt but there is undeniably an undertone of excitement when the shout goes up, followed by a flurry of action as commentators try to work out what has happened, who has gone down, and how that has affected the race.
Domestique: Servant. A rider whose role is to support other riders on their team, their jobs range from fetching and carrying extra food and water, blocking the wind at the front to protect another rider, chasing down rival teams’ riders who are a threat to their leader’s position, and even giving up their own bike in the event of a mechanical.
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe riders take on Stage 12 in 2024
© Kristof Ramon/Red Bull Content Pool