2025 Tour de France Grand Depart at major risk of disruption

Concerns are mounting this morning over the Grand Départ of the 2025 Tour de France, following reports that industrial unrest in northern France could disrupt the opening stages of cycling’s biggest race.

According to La Voix du Nord, the powerful CGT union (France’s largest after the CFDT) has issued a stark warning in response to widespread job cuts at steel giant ArcelorMittal. Tensions have reached a boiling point in recent days, with the union demanding urgent government action to address what it sees as a crisis in the French steel industry.

A major protest took place on Thursday in Dunkirk, where 1,500 affected workers gathered to demonstrate. During the rally, Paul Delescaut, the Secretary General of the CGT in the Nord department, delivered a pointed message that directly referenced the Tour.

“If we don’t sit down before July 7 to discuss the nationalization of the steel industry, there will be no yellow jersey in Dunkirk,” Delescaut declared. “I respect the Tour de France and the people who love it, but this is an economic and social emergency. Metal affects everyone. Including cycling.”

The CGT’s remarks place direct pressure on the race’s Grand Départ, which is scheduled to begin on 5 July and continue through to 27 July. Dunkirk, one of the host cities, is now at the centre of both political and sporting attention.

As the Tour approaches, organisers and local authorities may be forced into urgent negotiations to ensure that one of France’s most cherished sporting events can proceed without disruption.