According to the concession notice published by the City of Paris, the call for tenders for the organization of the Paris Marathon and Half-Marathon covers the editions 2027 to 2030. Three criteria determine the selection:
- Sports and operational project : 45 %
- Financial offer : 30 %
- Environmental approach : 25 %
The contract, lasting 48 monthsrepresents one of the most coveted sports markets in Europe. The future concessionaire will take over complete management: logistics, communication, marketing, partnerships, security coordination and payments due to the City. The latter receives each year several million euros in royaltiesproportional to registration revenue (nearly 7 million euros per year according to estimates) and commercial partnerships which bring the overall budget to around 10 million euros hors taxes.
The competitors in the running: a three-pole duel
The case not only pits ASO against a hypothetical rival, but also brings face to face three candidate configurations :
- Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) – the outgoing dealer. With its experience and infrastructure, ASO highlights its logistical mastery and its integrated media network (with the L’Équipe group). Its advantage: stability, links forged with authorities and sponsors, and flawless experience in managing the flow of tens of thousands of runners.
- Playground – Infront – OConnection – a private consortium with an international profile. Specializing in major urban events and global sporting partnerships, this trio relies on a renewed marketing and commercial approach, focusing on an “immersive” experience, digital support for the runner and a more readable environmental footprint.
- Havas Sports & Entertainment – Keneo – XIX Sports Group – a French collective focused on innovation and proximity. This group focuses on creativity, social communication and the “culturalization” of sport: stronger integration in neighborhoods, participatory formats and promotion of Parisian heritage.
These three models do not only represent different economic strategies, but visions of urban sport : industrial, events, or citizen.
Sponsors between vigilance and repositioning
Current partners are directly affected. The Half Marathon is now renamed HOKA Semi de Parisfollowing a five-year agreement signed in 2025 — a partnership that reflects the brand’s strategic shift: from trail running to road running, to expand its global reputation.
The Marathon remains associated with Schneider Electric, Hyundai, Asics et AG2R At the Worldshistorical pillars of the system. These partners have structured their activations over several years: sustainable platforms, solidarity operations, branding on the route, brand villages and hospitality.
But if the concession changes hands, all these contracts will have to be renegotiated. New incumbents could impose their own commercial networks or review the pricing structure. Brands like HOKA, Samsung, or other emerging equipment manufacturers could take over spaces left vacant, while Schneider Electric could redefine its role if the governance or environmental policy of the event evolves.
This game of financial balance weighs heavily: between 20% and 30% of the overall budget comes from these partnerships. Prolonged uncertainty over the name of the future manager therefore slows down contract extensions and new proposals.
A town hall in the position of arbiter… and beneficiary
For the City of Paris, this issue is as much financial as it is political. The call for tenders must maximize the direct returns to the community (via the fee), while guaranteeing strict commitments in terms of ecological transition andsocial inclusion.
Since the abandonment of plastic bottles during the 2024–2026 editions, the City wants to go further: carbon neutrality, soft mobility for volunteers, short circuits for supplies, logistics pooling with other sporting events. This environmental requirement, noted at 25% in the evaluation criteria, could benefit candidates capable of integrating impact monitoring technologies (carbon footprint, connected waste management, local compensation).
At the same time, the Town Hall wishes to preserve the popular dimension and affordable of these races, symbols of a sporting practice open to all – a point on which ASO, long perceived as industrial and media, is sometimes criticized.
Current blockages: caution, calendar and electoral issues
Officially, the decision should have taken place at the end of 2025 / beginning of 2026. But Paris sought to delay: avoid any pre-electoral controversy, check the budgetary balance of each offer and clarify the terms of environmental integration.
In the background, the discussions come up against two sensitive levers:
- the level of the fee paid to the Citywhich could exceed 2 million euros per year;
- governance of sponsors and media rightswhich some candidates would like to share differently, to make the concession more transparent and enhance the public impact.
Each month of delay increases organizational risks: 2027 registrations have not yet been able to open, traffic and security plans are not set in stone, and logistics teams are struggling to anticipate their budgets. A shift in the schedule could force the City to renew ASO on a transitional basistime to finalize the transfer.
And after? The Parisian model in question
Whoever wins, the decision will herald a change in times.
Three scenarios emerge:
- Continuity: ASO retains the contract, the City secures its fee and its standards, the sponsors remain in place, but the room for innovation remains limited.
- Controlled mutation: a new French operator takes over, with a more participatory and sustainable vision, refocusing the race on the “citizen-runner”.
- The commercial break: an international consortium is imposing a more globalized running economy, with urban franchise and digital distribution strategies.
In all cases, the Marathon and Half-Marathon remain a symbolic and lucrative asset: more than 100,000 participants each year, massive tourist benefits, a unique ecological and sporting showcase in the world.
The final decision, expected before the summer of 2026, will decide not only economic models, but two visions of sport in the post-Olympic metropolis: that of an organized spectacle or that of a shared event. And, for the first time in almost thirty years, Parisian bitumen could change hands.
Alain Jouve
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