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People are only just realising why the 2023 Tour de France starts in Spain

The Tour de France rolls out of Bilbao - yes, in Spain - on Saturday morning, and fans are only just starting to realise why the Tour starts outside of France so often

[The Tour de France will be welcome by the fanatical support of the Basque Country]

The Tour de France will be welcome by the fanatical support of the Basque Country(Image: YouTube/"HANDLE")

The Tour de France rolls out of, checks notes, Spain this weekend - but for cycling fans that's hardly out of the norm.

In 2022, Copenhagen hosted the start, while Leeds and Dublin have both once staged the opening weekend of the race. However, for the casual fan, people are only just starting to realise why the start of the race often takes place outside of the French borders.

The answer is simple: money. Back in the 1950s, Tour de France organisations were brainstorming ways to help generate more income for a race that was growing each year.

Until one man had an idea, the Grand Depart, they would charge cities to host the world's biggest bicycle race. And bids flocked in, with Amsterdam becoming the first city to host the start of the race outside of France.

READ MORE: Measuring myself up against a Tour de France pro proves they're freaks of nature

The Grand Depart didn't really catch fire until the 1970s - where it took place twice in the Netherlands and once in Belgium. In 1998, the Tour came to Dublin - the furthest away from France it has travelled - but it was overshadowed by a doping scandal that changed the sport forever.

In 2003, 100 years after the first Tour, there were grand ideas to start the race in New York - but they never got off the ground. London won the rights to host in 2007, while Yorkshire charmed French audiences in 2014.

What do you think of the Tour de France starting outside of France? Let us know in the comments section

[This photograph taken on June 28, 2023 shows a logo of the Tour de France ahead of the 110th edition of the cycling race, in Bilbao. The Tour de France will start in Bilbao, on July 1, 2023.]

The Tour de France often starts outside of the French borders

This year the race will have three days in the Spanish Basque Country, starting on Saturday in Bilbao. The race has started here once before, in 1992, when San Sebastian won the rights to host the opening stage.

The Basque County is a heartland of cycling: known for its fanatical support and challenging roads - the opening weekend promises to be a cracker.

Bilbao will host the first stage, while the second will run into San Sebastian, before a day for the fast men sees the peloton cross the French border in Bayonne.

[The Tour de France peloton rides through the centre of town on Stage 1 of the race on July 5, 2014 in Ilkley, United Kingdom. The world's greatest cycle race, the Tour de France started for the first time in its history in Yorkshire this weekend. The event is expected to bring thousands of cycling fans to the region.]

In 2014, Yorkshire was gripped by Tour de France fever(Image: Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)

Next year the Tour de France will roll out of the picturesque Italian city of Florence, marking the first time in the Tour's 120-year history the race will start outside of France for three years on the trot.

And it might continue that way for the foreseeable future, with the British government exploring options of hosting the Grand Depart in 2026.

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