[Words by Steve Thomas]
The 2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championship takes place in Northern France – which is the major race of the muddy season of drop-bar and skinny tyre bike racing. Although it is often seen as a strange offshoot of road racing, cyclo-cross in terms of recognition is a relative cycling youngster, and it could be considered as the predecessor of mountain biking and gravel riding – the gnarly old great grandad of off-road bike racing. It’s a place where the greats of skinny and fat-tyre off-road and road racing converge to loop it like crazy in elbow-to-elbow all-out combat.
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What’s it all about, how do we tune in to happy hour in the mu and who should we look out for? Read on.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championship – what’s it all about?
Although there are cyclo-cross races held year-round, the prime season is September-February, and northern Europe is very much its heartland, with the pint-sized hard punching and fine beer brewing Nirvana of Belgium being at its very core. On any given winter weekend, and also on holidays and occasional weekdays, too, this region goes into a cyclo-cross frenzy.
Cowbells ring out loud above the cheers of ale-sipping fans, TV cameras swing fast and furiously, as cyclo-cross, road, and mountain biking stars of the moment shred at insane speeds around tightly woven and slippery circuits of around a mile in length, skimming their comparatively skinny tyres over snow, ice, sand, and much more so mud.
Cyclo-cross racing is perhaps the most intense and hard-fought of the bike racing disciplines, which is why it’s so popular with not only rides, but fans, media, and organisers alike. The major cross races are focussed largely on Belgium, but many occur throughout Europe, in the USA and beyond, and the atmosphere is truly electric.
Needless to say, this also makes them highly financially alluring, both to organisers and riders alike hence the major events are ticketed and televised live. Races last around one hour plus a lap for men, and slightly less for women, juniors, and other age group categories. That said, cyclo-cross is not at all an elite sport, it is a huge participation sport the world over, and is a great way for both budding and established racers to hone their bike handling skills and sharpen their winter fitness too – plus it’s great fun.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships – how to watch
The 2025 World Championships will take place from 31 January – 2 February on the much-used Val de Souchez course in Lieven, northern France. Friday (31 January) sees the Team Relay, while Saturday (1 February) hosts the Women’s races; Elite, Under 23, and Junior, and Sunday (2 February) sees the Men’s Elite, Under 23 and Junior races take place.
The exact details of the TV/live coverage have not yet been announced, but they should be live on the UCI YouTube channel, Eurosport and Discovery+ in the UK, and HBO Max and Max elsewhere. If you fancy a dirty weekend away in France, then you still have time to sort the plan out. Both Lievin and Lens rail stations are just about 3-4 miles from the race course, and are accessible by Eurostar via Lille, while Calais is around 1.5 – 2 hours’ drive away.
Tickets, shuttle bus and parking details are all to be found at www.lievin2025.com.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships – the form book
As with any major bike race, the final selections for the title races will emerge during the days before the lights turn green, and with World Cup racing still in full flight there’s still time for fine-tuning and mishaps that could impact the start list and odds.
Missing from the Elite Men’s race are former champions Tom Pidcock and Wout van Aert, while after riding just a handful of races this winter, former Elite Women’s Champ Marianne Vos is expected to miss the title race, too. Even so, if a good result comes in this weekend’s World Cup race, we wouldn’t be surprised to see her lining up in an attempt to add yet another rainbow jersey to her huge collection.
Based on what’s clear right now, here are our tips for the top.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships – Elite Women to watch
Competition has been fast and ultra-tight on the Women’s Elite circuit this year. We anticipate this particular French battle to be fought out between a small group of established superpowers of the muddy racing scene, with a few interruptions from a certain young gun, or two. Most of these favourites will be slashing the mud in the familiar Orange jerseys of the Netherlands.
The Dutch girls have dominated both cyclo-cross and road racing for many years now, and their strength in numbers often leads to an “orange wash” of the field. So far this year that charge has been led by defending World Champ Fem van Emple and her nemesis and former champ Lucinda Brand, and both are equal favourites for the top spot again this year. Running hot of their heels will also be another former World Champ and teammate Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado and the newly crowned Dutch Champion Puck Pieterse, both could upstage their teammates on a good day.
Most likely to crack the Dutch dominance is Luxembourg’s Marie Schreiber, and should Britain’s Zoe Backstedt choose to step up to Elite from the U23 ranks and not defend her title, she could also be a long shot for a podium finish. Also never to be underestimated is former multiped World Champion Sanne Cant of Belgium, who is on fair form, and will be riding her final title race, though a podium would be a big ask for her now.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships – Elite Men to watch
Just about every tipster on planet dirt will have “born in Belgium” Dutch supremo Mathieu van der Poel at the top of their odds rank for this race, and fair enough – MVDP is, without doubt, the man to beat. He is also in top form and has a knack for winning rainbow jerseys in almost every cycling discipline. Given the absence of his arch rivals of recent times, Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock the odds lengthen for him winning.
However, the Belgian bookies will see things differently, and I, for one, would have a bundle bet on the nose of Belgian racer Thibau Nys, a young and brilliant allrounder and son of Sven Nys, the GOAT of cyclo-cross. Thibau won the last and sun-blessed World Cup round in Benidorm and the recent European Championships, and both were executed in impressive Nys family style. This could well be his rainbow year, or at the very least a podium finish. In time we can well see this “crown prince of cross” becoming the successor to Wout van Aert.
Should either of our dynamic duo falter or lapse, then there will be a swarm of dedicated Belgian cyclo-cross purists right behind them. This strength in numbers gives the Belgians the upper hand tactically, should they play it that way. The trio we see most likely to challenge MVDP and Nys are Michael Vanthourenhout, Toon Aerts and Eli Iserbyt – though if MVDP has that certain feeling he will no doubt take the bull by the horns from the start and will surely have one eye on the lookout for a gnarly move from Nys.
This race, and indeed the others, will make for a fine weekend of bike racing – both on screen and in person, just don’t forget to throw a baguette and some fromage in with your frites, mayo and Belgian beer when tuning in, to get into the Franco-Belge fusion spirit.
2025 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships – Brits in the mud
Although cyclo-cross is essentially dominated by the Belgians (apart from the women’s side, which is Dutch-dominated), with the Dutch a couple of strides behind, the Swiss, Czech and French a length or two behind them, Britain has a long and occasionally spectacular cyclo-cross history on the world stage – and no more so than during the past decade.
In junior and Under 23 ranks British riders have been a podium-topping cyclo-cross phenomenon of late, although until Tom Pidcock came along that had never really translated to Elite level victory regularly for the men, though the legendary and pioneering Helen Wyman made her lonesome mark for years in the women’s ranks.
This year the former World Champ Pidcock has side-lined cyclo cross in pursuit of future road racing glory, leaving Cameron Mason and Thomas Mein to fly the British flag in France. Both riders are capable of top-ten finishes – or even better if the French mud aligns, but with the profusion of Belgian and Dutch stars that’s a big ask.
Somewhat controversially, British Cycling is only sending 11 riders to the Championships, and although it is indeed a strong lineup, there are no Elite Women or Under 23 Men selected, all having failed to meet BC’s selection criteria. Many within the sport can’t help but think this is somewhat of a faux pas, and in so many ways, both for riders and indeed for BC and British cyclo-cross evolution.
Of those who have been selected, we would anticipate Zoe Backstedt being a favourite to retain her U23 title, with Cat Ferguson also running close to the podium and Oscar Amey could also be an outside podium bet in the Men’s Junior race.
Team GB
Elite men
Cameron Mason, Thomas Mein.
Under-23 women
Zoe Backstedt, Cat Ferguson, Ella Maclean-Howell, Imogen Wolff.
Junior men
Oscar Amey, Milo Wills.
Junior women
Arabella Blackburn, Ellie Mitchinson, Zoe Roche
