Vuelta a España: Race and Betting Guide to 2024s Grand Tour

by Roy Brindley, 14 August 2024

Superstars Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar may be missing, but the 2024 Vuelta a España will surely provide a thrilling spectacle. A gruelling 3,265-kilometre race, with just one flat stage during a route focused on challenging mountain climbs and two individual time trials, can only deliver a worthy winner.

With a free rein, Tour de France fourth Joao Almeida is fancied to stake a serious claim on the 2024 Vuelta a España. ©GettyImages

Starting in Lisbon, Portugal, on August 17th, the 79th edition of the race will feature 176 riders representing 22 teams. Defending champion Sepp Kuss is in the field and, having shown his well-being by taking the Vuelta a Burgos during the first week of August, he is amongst the bookies favourites.

Primož Roglic is another star rider in the peloton. A fourth win in the race will see the Slovenian join Spaniard Roberto Heras as the joint most successful Vuelta a España rider in history. Despite withdrawing from the Tour de France one month ago – following a Stage 12 crash that gave him a lower back fracture – 34-year-old Roglic is the clear favourite with the UK’s cycling betting sites.

Why Are Grand Tours So Popular Now?

Following some gloomy years, cycling is enjoying a renaissance. Confidence in the sport has returned, and fan/team interaction is at an all-time high, courtesy of social media. The litmus test is bookmakers’ willingness to bet on races. Betting sites are offering more markets on cycle races than ever before.

Part of the sport’s increase in popularity can be attributed to Netflix’s ‘Tour de France: Unchained’ documentary. Now in its second series, it launched on the streaming platform in June 2023. Globally, the three Grand Tours enjoy more television airtime than ever, and star riders are appearing from countries that have never been considered.

A case in point is sprinter Biniam Girmay. The Eritrean athlete became the first black African cyclist to win a Grand Tour stage when winning at the 2022 Giro d’Italia. He won an additional three stages at this year’s Tour de France, sending his countrymen into delirium.

The hero Biniam Girmay is back in Eritrea 🇪🇷💚

Enkae bselam ateka Bini jigna 😍 pic.twitter.com/9jAGcQBt7Q

— Intermarché-Wanty (@IntermarcheW) August 7, 2024

This rise in popularity, aided by the recent cycling events at the Olympic Games, could make the 2024 Vuelta a España the most-watched edition of the race ever. If you are not already a cycling fan, more so a casual viewer who likes to bet on and watch sport, here are six must-see stages:

What Are the Vuelta a España Jerseys?

There are four jerseys in the Vuelta a España. Whereas the Giro d’Italia race leader wears pink, and the Tour de France leader dons a yellow vest, it is a red jersey that is carried by the general classification leader in Spain’s grand tour.

The leader of the Vuelta’s mountains classification wears a polka-dot jersey. Its large blue spots mean it is very different to the one that Tour de France riders wear. The points leader’s green jersey is a lime green, while the jersey for best young rider is a familiar plain white.

Running from August 17th until September 8th, La Vuelta 2024’s profile looks like this:

• 1 flat stage (stage 5, August 21st)
• 2 rest days (August 26th and September 2nd)
• 2 individual time-trial stages (the first and last stages)
• 5 medium mountain stages (including stage 14, the longest stage at 199 km)
• 5 hilly stages (two with high-altitude finales)
• 8 mountain stages (the last being on the penultimate day)

How to Watch the Vuelta a España

Every Vuelta a España stage will be broadcast in its entirety on Eurosport. British and Irish Fans can also watch the action ad-free on the Discovery+ streaming service. Eurosport’s UK coverage will be bookended by ’The Breakaway’, a preview and recap show hosted by Orla Chennaoui.

Previous Vuelta a España Winner List

What Are the Best Vuelta a España Bets?

With just one flat stage, there could be numerous individual stage winners in this year’s Vuelta. Wout van Aert will surely start favourite for the one day where racing takes place primarily on the level (stage 5). He could stake a claim in some of the hillier stages, too.

However, the Belgian may have to perform super domestique duties for his teammate, Sepp Kuss. Skipping both the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France, Kuss’ Visma-Lease a Bike team will be hoping the American’s fresh legs can conquer the course quicker than anyone else for a second successive year.

Top-priced 5/1 by the odds compilers at the Betfred online sportsbook, our betting experts believe the quote is a ridiculously short proposition. He was 300/1 ahead of last year’s victory and only collected the prize when superior teammates, Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglic, dumped the victory on him.

In five previous attempts, Kuss had finished no better than eighth in the Vuelta, and six appearances in the Tour de France and Giro has never yielded a finish better than twelfth. Compare that form to Primož Roglic, whose five previous finishes include three wins, a third and a 2022 DNF when forced to withdraw due to a crash when lying second in the general classification.

The heart says Roglic is the best bet. However, ageing and following a severe injury incurred in the Tour de France just four weeks ago, even BetVictor’s industry top price of 9/4 makes the head say no. Nairo Quintana is another with age against him and a catalogue of injuries. Nevertheless, it would be no surprise to see the 2016 winner land a mountain stage during the race’s third week.

Almeida at the Odds With a Free Rein

The 2024 Vuelta begins in Portugal for the first time in 27 years, and Portugal’s best cyclist, João Almeida, would love to give his home nation a victory on the Vuelta’s opening day. As a fine time-trialist, it is very possible the 26-year-old will be the first to wear the red jersey.

We believe he could also be wearing it at the end. The final stage, being another time trial, can only work to Almeida’s strengths. Be mindful that the UAE Team Emirates rider was ordered to perform domestique duties in the Tour de France, where he helped Tadej Pogačar claim victory and took fourth place overall.

In six completed grand tours, the Portuguese cyclist has finished in the top 10 on every occasion. Now, not tasked with a support role but as a leader with powerful wingmen – such as Pavel Sivakov, Jay Vine, Brandon McNulty, upcoming star Issac del Toro and possibly Adam Yates – Almeida has a free-rein and can out-perform his 13/2 Vuelta a España odds quoted by bet365.