London Marathon 2026: When are the ballot results announced?

Editor

3rd May 2025, 10:21am

More than a million people have entered the ballot to run next year’s London Marathon - but will have to wait a while before they learn if they have been successful.

How many people have applied to enter the 2026 London Marathon?

The number of entrants - 1,133,813 - is a new world record, according to the organisers, and it far surpasses last year’s ballot’s then-record total of 840,318 applications for this year’s marathon.

“This is an absolutely staggering total which reaffirms London as by far the most popular marathon on the planet,” said Hugh Brasher, CEO of London Marathon Events. “Marathon Day is always an extraordinary and inspirational day when we celebrate the very best of humanity.

There has been a lot of interest in next year's London Marathon - here's how to enter the ballot — There has been a lot of interest in next year's London Marathon - here's how to enter the ballot | Getty Images

There has been a lot of interest in next year's London Marathon - here's how to enter the ballot — There has been a lot of interest in next year's London Marathon - here's how to enter the ballot | Getty Images

“The unique camaraderie of the event and the amazing support from the huge crowds show London at its best and this year was the best yet.”

Applications for the 2026 race, to be held on Sunday, April 26, have increased by 36% from last year and are nearly double the total for the 2024 London Marathon, organisers said.

There were nearly equal numbers of male and female UK applicants in the public ballot, organisers said.

The total number of UK applications for 2026 was 869,803, of which 49.87% were men’s (433,775 applications), 49.55% were women’s (430,983 applications) and 0.58% were from non-binary applicants (5,044 entries). There were a further 264,011 applications from non-UK residents in the international ballot.

When will the results of the London Marathon ballot 2026 be announced?

Everyone who has entered the general ballot will receive an email in July letting them know whether they have been successful. No date has been given for when this will be.

There is no cost for the ballot, but anyone who gets a place will pay a £79.99 entry fee, £10 more than the 2025 price. The ballot closed on Friday at 4pm.

How many people take part in the London Marathon?

This year’s London Marathon event also broke a Guinness World Record (GWR) for the largest number of finishers.

A total of 56,640 participants crossed the finish line, beating the 55,646 set by the TCS New York City marathon in November 2024.

Mr Brasher said: “Breaking the Guinness World Records title for the largest number of finishers in a marathon, in our 45th edition, was a truly astonishing achievement. We also had a record number of children and young people take part in the 40th edition of the TCS Mini London Marathon the day before, when more than 15,000 children took part in the mass event on The Mall.”

Additionally, 41 other GWR titles were broken from 87 attempts, including a participant dressed as a traffic cone.

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