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Find out how to take on the TCS London Marathon for charity 
 
Finisher at the TCS London Marathon

The Ballot Explained

The ballot is now open!

Marathon Day next year is Sunday 27 April 2025. You can enter the ballot via Let's Do This below.

The ballot closes on Friday 26 April 2024.

Please note, your confirmation email may take a couple hours to arrive. Don't worry, we've got your application.

Enter now
The TCS London Marathon is the most popular marathon on the planet, and more than 1.25 million people have completed the event since the first edition in 1981.

Want to join them? Here’s everything you need to know about entering the TCS London Marathon Ballot and what the process involves.

What is the TCS London Marathon Ballot?

You and marathon hopefuls across the globe enter the public ballot, and then we draw winners at random. Everyone has the same chance – it is down to the luck of the draw! If you are successful, you’ll be allocated a place in the next TCS London Marathon.

Did you know you can get a second chance?

If you live in the UK and choose to donate your entry fee to support the work of the London Marathon Foundation during the ballot process, it’s a win-win situation. 

Your entry fee, should you get a place through the ballot, is reduced from £69.99 to £49.99. If you don’t get a place in the main ballot, we automatically enter you into a second ballot and we will ensure that you will at least double your chance of getting a place through that second draw. If you are successful in either ballot, your entry is prepaid and confirmed. 

If you are unsuccessful in both ballots, you’ll receive a premium winter running top (this would retail at £60) and your donation will help the London Marathon Foundation to make a difference and inspire activity across the UK.

What happens next?

You will receive a confirmation email when you apply. You’ll also receive a payment receipt, if you have donated your entry fee. Please check your junk folder if this doesn’t arrive in your inbox. The results of the 2025 TCS London Marathon Ballot will be emailed to all entrants in July.

What happens if I get offered a place?

If you live in the UK and didn’t opt to donate your entry fee when applying, you’ll need to pay the full entry fee of £69.99. 

Then you’ll need to get training! See our training plans, or if you want a personalised training plan, we’ve teamed up with the experts at Coopah to create training plans to help you reach your PB goals, download the Coopah app now.

See you at the Start Line!

FAQs

  • If you require assistance with our online entry system or have any questions, please email us and we'll be happy to help.

    You can see the support on offer to participants with disabilities here. 

    You can also download a 16-week wheelchair training plan here.
     
  • The cost of a place in the TCS London Marathon for international participants is £120, plus a £26 carbon offset levy.

    Across all our events and operations, we’re acting to reduce or eliminate greenhouse gas-emitting activities and are paying close attention to monitoring our carbon footprint.

    On average, international participant travel is the largest contributor to the carbon footprint of the TCS London Marathon, accounting for more than 90 per cent of our carbon footprint.

    We want to protect our natural environment, which is why we work with carbon removals partner Cur8 to remove carbon emissions that we are operationally responsible for as well as travel-related emissions from our international participants 

    If you live outside the UK, you can also enter the TCS London Marathon through one of our approved international tour operators here.


  • Your marathon journey isn’t over! Below you can discover the other ways to enter the TCS London Marathon.

    Charity Entry

    Running Clubs

    Good for Age

    Championship Places

    International Tour Operators

    Or you could take on one of the other London Marathon Events!