Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France 2026 sends the peloton across 258.3km of northern France on Sunday, April 12, from Compiègne to the famous Roubaix velodrome. Whether you're at home or abroad, here's how to watch live, with all official TV channels, legitimate free streams, and a simple way to keep access to your home subscription securely through a VPN while travelling.
Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France 2026 Race Times
Sunday 12 April 2026
| Timezone | Race Start | Est. Finish | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local | CEST / UTC+2 | 10:50 | 16:49 |
Race Favourites
Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) returns to Roubaix chasing a fourth consecutive victory, a feat unmatched in the modern era. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates XRG) is hunting the one Monument missing from his collection. Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) both have the engine and cobble pedigree to contend, while Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) brings raw power that suits the late pavé sectors. Punctures, crashes and the Carrefour de l'Arbre will shape everything.
How to Watch Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France 2026
The race is available through paid services in the UK, US and Canada, while several countries have free-to-air coverage via public broadcasters. Full details are in the table below.
Where to Watch Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France 2026
| Region | Broadcaster | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | TNT Sports via discovery+ | £33.99/mo | discovery+ Premium plan required for live cycling (£33.99/mo). A separate discovery+ TNT Sports plan is available at £30.99/mo. Also available via TNT Sports on linear TV. |
United States | Peacock | $10.99/mo | Peacock Premium plan required for live sports ($10.99/mo). The $7.99 Select tier does not include live events. |
Canada | FloBikes | CA$29.99/mo | Annual plan also available at a reduced monthly rate. |
Australia | SBS / SBS On Demand | Free | Free-to-air on SBS and streaming via SBS On Demand. No subscription required. |
France | France 3 / france.tv | Free | Live free-to-air broadcast on France 3 and streaming on france.tv. |
Belgium | VRT / Sporza / VRT Max and RTBF / Auvio | Free | Flemish coverage on VRT1 and VRT Max. French-language coverage on RTBF and Auvio. |
Netherlands | NOS / NPO Start | Free | Free-to-air on NOS with streaming via NPO Start. |
Italy | RAI Sport / RAI Play | Free | Live on RAI Sport with free streaming on RAI Play. |
Spain | Teledeporte / RTVE Play | Free | Free-to-air on Teledeporte and streaming via RTVE Play. |
Legal Free Streams
Velora tip: Several countries offer official free-to-air coverage of Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France 2026. These are legitimate national broadcasts, not workarounds:
- Australia – SBS / SBS On Demand
- France – France 3 / france.tv
- Belgium – VRT1 / VRT Max / Sporza (Flemish) and RTBF / Auvio (French)
- Netherlands – NOS / NPO Start
- Italy – RAI Sport / RAI Play
- Spain – Teledeporte / RTVE Play
If you're travelling abroad, you can keep using your home broadcaster's official service by connecting through a trusted VPN, as long as that use complies with the service's terms.
Using a VPN Legally While Travelling
Broadcasters often restrict live streams to viewers in their home territory. If you're away from home on race day, a VPN lets you securely connect to your home network, so you can keep watching your existing paid or free account from abroad.
Velora Choice: NordVPN
Use a secure VPN connection to watch cycling on your existing subscription services or free streams while you’re away from home. Always follow local laws and your provider’s terms of use.
Our editorial team uses NordVPN by choice, we all purchased it independently to watch cycling races wherever we are.
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How to do it:
- Download NordVPN, our recommended VPN for streaming while travelling.
- Connect to your home country (e.g., UK for discovery+ or France for france.tv).
- Open your usual broadcaster's site or app and start watching.
Velora never endorses bypassing broadcast rights. A VPN should only be used to access official services, whether paid or free-to-air, while abroad.
Always use legitimate platforms. Unofficial streams often breach copyright and expose viewers to malware or deceptive ads.
Why Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France Matters
Some background on the race this year... Van der Poel is looking for his fourth win at the race in a row. While Tom Boonen and Roger de Vlaeminck have managed to win four times at the race, they were not consecutive victories. Another possible bit of history is the very well documented possibility of Pogačar taking the final Monument to complete his collection and joining Eddy Merckx, Rik Van Looy and De Vlaeminck with all five under the belt. He could also then go on to win all five in one season, an achievement that has never been done before.
It, of course, is not all about Pogačar and Van der Poel, though. Pedersen, Van Aert and Ganna are also main standout names with the first two taking the final places in the top five at Flanders and Ganna stealing the win at Dwars Door Vlaanderen from Van Aert a few days before Flanders.
That said, there are other riders in the wings who will be hoping to take that next step. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) is a key component in Van der Poel's armour, but the Belgian sprint star has also finished second twice at this race.
Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) may be a key lieutenant for Van Aert, but the rider from Darlington in northern England showed great form at Roubaix last season and took a win at GP Denain earlier that year. Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) is another key domestique, this time for Pogačar but the Belgian has taken a runner up spot at the Hell of the North before, as has fellow UAE rider, Nils Politt in 2021 and 2019 respectively.
When to watch Paris-Roubaix
Key Cobble Sector Times
Projected times at 45km/h average — men's race, Sunday 12 April
Sector | Distance | Stars | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 – Gruson | |||
| 4 – Carrefour de l'Arbre | |||
| 5 – Camphin-en-Pévèle | |||
| 11 – Mons-en-Pévèle | |||
| 17 – Hornaing à Wandignies | |||
| 19 – Trouée d'Arenberg | |||
| 20 – Haveluy à Wallers | |||
| Finish – Roubaix Velodrome |
The race kicks off with a frantic battle to create the early breakaway. Some years it has failed to get away before the cobbles and by that point, the race is well and truly on. Other times, the breakaway sees success. Mat Hayman shocking the crowd to deny Boonen a historic fifth win in 2016 is a standout memory there. The first standout cobbled sector that has seen the race split before is the four star, sector 20, Haveluy à Wallers. This sector comes just before the Trouée d'Arenberg. sector 19. The Arenberg is always a brilliant time to tune into the race, complete with its special chicane.
After that, it is a little bit of a wait to the next massive point. That said, the race can split at any moment and riders can ride away at any time. Peter Sagan took his win in 2018 by riding away on the asphalt with about 50km to go before bridging to Silvan Dillier from the break and winning the two-up sprint.
Sector 11, Mons-en-Pévèle, is the next five star sector on the course and has seen some huge moves in the past with Boonen and Fabian Cancellara using it as key launchpads for their victories in the race. If riders don't get away there, though, it is followed by a few lower starred sectors before finally getting to the main action points of sectors five and four, the four star Camphin-en-Pévèle and the brutal five star Carrefour de l'Arbre, where most of the winning moves in previous years have been made.
After that, it is a case of riding over a few more lower starred sectors and riding to the finish on the old outdoor velodrome in Roubaix to see who will raise their arms in victory.
Quick Recap
- Watch live via official broadcasters in the UK (TNT Sports / discovery+), US (Peacock) and Canada (FloBikes)
- Free and legal streams available in Australia, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain
- All race times above are local to northern France, with automatic conversion on-site
- Travelling abroad? Use a VPN to keep access to your legitimate home subscription securely
- Avoid pirate streams, they're unsafe and breach copyright
Velora Choice: NordVPN
Use a secure VPN connection to watch cycling on your existing subscription services or free streams while you’re away from home. Always follow local laws and your provider’s terms of use.
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Velora only promotes VPN use to maintain access to legitimate, paid, or free-to-air services while abroad.
Cover image credit: Pauline Ballet
