Every year, the same question comes back: who's going to win the UTMB? Wrong question. The right one is: how did a 171-kilometer race around a mountain massif become one of the most profitable, most-watched sporting events in the world?
Chamonix, late August
In late August, Chamonix changes face. Shop windows fill with posters, hotels sell out weeks in advance, brands build entire villages at the foot of Mont Blanc. Tens of thousands of spectators follow the livestream, in person or on screen, while anonymous runners become, for one weekend, figures followed by hundreds of thousands of people.
None of this existed in the same way twenty years ago. The UTMB was a race. It became an ecosystem.
Three mechanics behind the shift
Three mechanics explain this shift.
1. Organized scarcity. The "Running Stones" system — points accumulated on World Series qualifying races and exchangeable for a spot in the lottery — doesn't just manage trail safety. It creates desire. The harder a bib is to get, the more symbolic value it carries, both for amateur runners and for brands wanting to attach their name to it.
2. A platform, not an event. The UTMB built a "World Series": qualifying races all over the world, under the same banner. It's the exact same logic as a media group multiplying local franchises to grow a global brand. Every qualifying race becomes a touchpoint with the UTMB brand, long before the starting line in Chamonix. The result shows up in the numbers: the UTMB World Series circuit generated 30 million euros in revenue in 2025, up from 25 million the year before (u-Trail) — growth that, elsewhere, raises as many questions as it does eyebrows.
3. Content before, during, and after. Commentated livestreams, athlete profiles, documentaries, social media running around the clock: the UTMB produces content all year, not just on race day. In 2024, the UTMB World Series broadcast eight live events, drawing 16 million viewers across more than 165 hours of coverage (Outside, UTMB by the Numbers). This isn't a sports site covering a race anymore. It's a channel broadcasting year-round.
A race that only produces content one weekend a year remains an event. A race that produces it all year becomes a media outlet.
Personal takeaway
What fascinates me about the UTMB isn't the performance of the elite runners. It's the discipline with which the organization built a desirable, coherent, profitable brand without ever losing the essence of the race: the effort, the grit, the mountain. It's a case study that should be taught as much in business schools as in trail running clubs.
In your view, which race has the best brand strategy today?
