Off we go — from Grand Départ to Champs-Élysées, with both the yellow jersey and the lanterne rouge in view. The Tour de France returns on July 4 and runs through July 26.This year’s race makes a first-time start in Barcelona. It whisks us along the Pyrenees, the Alps and 29 French departments. A total of 184 riders are represented across 23 different teams. It’s a diverse, competitive field.Tadej Pogačar from Slovenia tries to claim his third straight overall Tour de France victory. He also goes for the fifth of his career, which would tie Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault for the most ever.Pogačar meets a true rival in Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard, who has a pair of titles of his own. Those two cyclists have combined to win the last six editions of this event.We get a look at the debut of 19-year-old Frenchman Paul Seixas, too. He tries to make the host nation proud amid staggering hype and mounting questions. The 2026 lineup also includes Germany’s Florian Lipowitz, who finished third overall last time, plus Red Bull teammate Remco Evenepoel of Belgium. Fellow Belgians Jasper Philipsen and Tim Merlier lead the green jersey points chase.Why are velodromes sloped?Tifo SportsThe 2026 Tour de France scheduleNBC Sports carries all 21 Tour de France stages for U.S. viewership. The network taps established play-by-play voice Phil Liggett as the narrator and former cyclist Bob Roll as the lead analyst.These broadcasts use audio from team radios and real-time stats from interactive course maps. Most stages get live TV airings on NBCSN, with streaming options via Peacock. Fortunately, there are some Saturday and Sunday coverages on the main NBC channel, which will also be available on Fubo (Stream Free Now).Elsewhere, Canada can tune in through FloSports and the UK through TNT Sports or HBO Max. The complete list of international broadcasters is available here.NBC is also free over the air. All times are ET.Saturday, July 4