Fw: How & Where to Watch Pro Cycling in the US Market in 2026

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Gregg

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Jan 20, 2026, 1:09:02 PMJan 20
to Gregg' via Stretching Spandex
Last year we had Max and I watched a bunch of races that way. (In addition to highlights of other races on YouTube.) Might not be an option this year. 

Anybody got Peacock or FloBikes? Like 'em? 



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From: Spencer Martin from Beyond the Peloton <beyondth...@substack.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 12:58:15 PM EST
Subject: How & Where to Watch Pro Cycling in the US Market in 2026

Breaking down exactly where you can watch every major pro bike race in 2026 in the US, how much it is going to cost & what you can do to get it on the cheap
͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­͏     ­
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How & Where to Watch Pro Cycling in the US Market in 2026

Breaking down exactly where you can watch every major pro bike race in 2026 in the US, how much it is going to cost & what you can do to get it on the cheap

Jan 20
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With the 2026 WorldTour season officially underway in Australia at the Tour Down Under, I wanted to send BTP readers into the road season with at least a basic guide to 1) where they can (legally) find bike races in the United States (since it is the largest readership market of this newsletter) and 2) help people understand which streaming services they need to purchase, or let go, to watch the races they most want to see.

  • While one might imagine this to be a straightforward project, aside from the cost, attempting to watch cycling in the United States is incredibly confusing because it is not easy to figure out which races are featured on which streaming services.

    • Unlike mainstream sports, where networks and streaming services announce their acquisition of television rights in press releases and quickly codify the information, the broadcast rights for professional cycling live in an extremely unhelpful netherworld, making it extremely difficult to know where each race is being broadcast.

    • This is likely at least partially a tactic that allows all three US-based streaming services to advertise that they offer cycling while not fully admitting that they each offer only a small slice of the calendar and, for all except Peacock, that they don’t offer the sport’s biggest draw, the Tour de France.

      • Making things even more complicated than years past is that even with the 2026 season underway, the rights for RCS’ portfolio of races, which include the Giro d’Italia and Strade Bianche, have yet to be sold.

        • This means that, as things stand, there is no way to (legally) watch those races in the United States, and that auto-renewing with the service that previously aired them, you may not actually be purchasing access to watch those same events in 2026.

In the recent past, a particularly bad offender of this confusion tactic was FloBikes, a niche sports-only streaming service that airs nearly the entire calendar in Canada, which would list all of the races they offer in their main market, but not explicitly show that they weren’t available in all markets.

  • This meant a casual US-based browser might see this schedule on FloBikes’ website and assume you can watch the Tour de France if you purchase the service.

    • But beginning this season, they have added a helpful Streaming column to their schedule, which indicates whether the event is streaming on Flo but not in the market from which you are viewing the schedule.

So, Who Actually Offers What in the US Market?

To help my readers navigate this confusion, I have included my deeply researched best-guess guide below for where US-based viewers can find each race.

  • In years past, a good rule of thumb for every other race not included is that every ASO-owned race (aka French + Spanish races) are broadcast on Peacock, every Flanders Classic race (Belgian races) are on FloBikes, and RCS races (Italian races), plus everything else, are on HBO Max.

    • But an odd wrinkle in 2026 is that, as things stand, RCS hasn’t been able to reach a deal to sell its international streaming rights, meaning there is currently no way to watch races like Strade Bianche or the Giro d’Italia in the US market.

      • I would assume this is likely to change in the coming weeks, and that in the US market, they will either be available on WBD’s HBO Max or absorbed by either Peacock or FloBikes.

What Is This Going to Cost Me?

Assuming RCS and WBD reach a deal to stream their races on HBO Max, US cycling fans will still need three separate streaming services to view the entire 2026 WorldTour road calendar, with an all-in annual cost of $445 (up from $350 in 2025).

  • Cost of 2026 US Streaming Cycling Services (assuming HBO Max airs RCS Races):
    HBO Max (Standard Plan): $185 per year
    FloBikes: $150 per year
    Peacock (Premium Plan): $110 per year

    • Total Annual Cost: $445

      • However, if the RCS rights are absorbed by either Flo or Peacock, the cost would decrease significantly (I will send out an update when this decision is made).

        • Cost of 2026 US Streaming Cycling Services (assuming no HBO Max/RCS Deal):
          FloBikes: $150 per year
          Peacock: $110 per year

          • Total Annual Cost: $260

  • One thing to keep in mind is that while most streaming services will advertise a cheaper bottom tier plan, these almost always do not include live sports.

    • And while most will have a higher ad-free tier, live sports are usually exempt and will still have ad breaks during the race.

Wait, Can’t I Watch This All for Free?

While you can, at least theoretically, access pirated streams of races to avoid dealing with any of the above confusion and financial burden, I have grown somewhat opposed to consistently relying on illegal streams in recent years.

  • Beyond the ethical, legal, and digital hygiene concerns, if you plan to watch a significant portion of the calendar or even just the biggest races, the low quality of the streams and the fact that they are consistently bogged down by traffic surges or taken down completely in the final few kilometers of major races will slowly but surely drive you insane, and leave you searching for more reliable broadcast sources.

Potential VPN Workarounds to Save Significant Money & Streamline Your Viewing Experience...

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Shawn Gallagher

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Jan 20, 2026, 2:51:15 PMJan 20
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We pay $10.99/mo for peacock, mostly for the Premier League coverage.  It's good olympic content too.  I haven't watched any of the cycling coverage, but I did see it scrolling though the carousel earlier this week.

I think there are a few places on the web you might see discount codes.  I think we got it on a promo deal for 1/month for the first year, and since then they've hiked the price.
-S


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Edward Ryan

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Jan 20, 2026, 4:11:34 PMJan 20
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Peacock is good. Covers a lot. Have to tolerate Bobkee. 

E
Ed Ryan
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On Jan 20, 2026, at 3:51 PM, Shawn Gallagher <shawnga...@gmail.com> wrote:



Henry Azar

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Jan 20, 2026, 9:05:02 PMJan 20
to stretchin...@googlegroups.com, Gregg' via Stretching Spandex
Hi Gregg! Great to hear from you, and happy 2026 to all! I have Peacock, and it’s pretty good. You get Phil Liggett, who is almost always wrong but compensates by being enthusiastic, and Bob Roll, who is smart and funny (and kind to Phil) plus some other guys I don’t care much about. At least that’s been the lineup the last few years. Lots of glamor shots of France, which I enjoy. Plus a lot of English Premier League games if of interest, and that’s about it (although we did binge on 30 Rock, which has held up well).  I can’t speak to FloBikes. 

Best,
Henry

On Jan 20, 2026, at 1:09 PM, 'Gregg' via Stretching Spandex <stretchin...@googlegroups.com> wrote:


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Gregg

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Jan 20, 2026, 11:13:05 PMJan 20
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Sounds good. And I can tolerate Bobkee! 

Shawn, I'll get my daughter Alexandra on the hunt for discount codes. Digital native and all that. 



Gregg

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Jan 20, 2026, 11:15:13 PMJan 20
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Hey Henry. You should ride with us again -- though not this week! Are you still on a Litespeed? I am now on an Emonda. Fits me better. 



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