Barcelona –

As the Tour de France unveiled its fourth foreign start in five years in Barcelona this week, organizers pointed to the financial logic of starting the event abroad while fending off political criticism from those who believe the world's greatest cycling race should exclusively showcase its home country.

"We must convince the French that the start should be abroad again," Tour director Christian Prudhomme said on Tuesday in Barcelona, while unveiling the first two stages of the 2026 Tour.

For Amaury Sport Organization (ASO), the company that owns the Tour, the financial logic is clear.

The company does not provide figures but, several sources agree, Copenhagen in 2022, Bilbao in 2023 and Florence in 2024, each paid ASO around €6 million ($6.3 million) to host the "Grand Depart," a figure that does not include other expenses and investments that can double the bill.

French cities pay less.

Brest forked out €3.6 million ($3.7 million) to host the first four stages in Brittany in 2021, and Lille is paying around €4.2 million ($4.3) for the 2025 Tour.

"It's more expensive abroad than in France, in part because there are associated travel and accommodation costs, which are often a little higher than in France," Pierre-Yves Thouault, deputy director of cycling at ASO, said.

The Barcelona start will be the 27th non-French starting location since the Tour first went on the road internationally in Amsterdam in 1954.

In Barcelona, Prudhomme said the Tour needed to make "my country, France, shine abroad."

"These images, which are broadcast in 190 countries around the world, attract people because it's their home, and then these people may go and spend their holidays in France because they discover France thanks to the Tour," he said.

A "Grand Depart" is costly to organize with festivities that stretch over several days starting with the team presentations on Thursday before the riders get going on Saturday.

For mid-race stages, the costs are lower — usually €100,000 ($103,884) for a start and €140,000 ($145,437) for a finish, Thouault said.

That does not include the extra costs, notably the road improvements required for a race of this size.

The Tour receives 300 applications to host stages every year. That proves, Thouault said, that it's worth the money.

"If we receive so many applications, it's because there's an interest, and, beyond the price, we also have to see what it brings for these towns in terms of visibility and media coverage," he said.

That visibility comes from live broadcasting. The Tour claims to be the third-most watched sporting event after the Summer Olympics and the soccer World Cup — neither of which is annual.

Hosting stages also boosts the local economy that accommodates and feeds the teams, the Tour "caravan" of support vehicles, the media and visiting fans.

After Bilbao hosted the start in 2023, an audit report carried out by local research company Ikertalde on behalf of the Basque organizing committee calculated that the €12.2 million ($12.7 million) invested by local institutions generated €103.9 million ($107.9 million), a ratio of 1 to 8.5.

David Escude, councilor for sports on the Barcelona City Council, said hosting the Tour "is not an expensive investment for the city."

"There are few sporting events that generate as much interest on the five continents," he said. "The Tour offers an unparalleled showcase."

Ruben Vinuales, the mayor of Tarragona, which will host the start of the second stage in 2026, said he was excited.

"Hosting the Tour is a dream," he said. "Just imagining the world's greatest cyclists saying the name Tarragona gives me goosebumps."