If you don’t already have tickets for the 2026 Free Press Marathon, taking place on Sunday, Oct. 18, you may be out of luck.
The Free Press Marathon announced on Friday, Jan. 9, that it had sold out of spots for the marathon and international half marathon events, the organization’s two most popular attractions. Tickets went on sale on Jan. 1 and took a little over a week to sell out.
That’s two months earlier than the previous record, with spots for the 2025 Free Press Marathon selling out in March of 2025. The race, which was first run in 1978, had never sold out in a year prior to 2024.
“The sellouts arrived even earlier than we could have imagined,” said the marathon’s race director Aaron Velthoven.
The two races sold out in a matter of days despite organizers raising the number of open spots. The 2025 marathon drew around 26,000 registrants across the entire race weekend, setting the race record, while the 2026 race is expected to attract around 30,000 registrants.
“The increased interest is just more proof that the marathon has become a signature event on Detroit’s sporting calendar — and a can’t-miss event for the global running community, which comes to our region to run a one-of-a-kind international race,” said Velthoven.
According to organizers, participants in the marathon and international half marathon will increase from 20,000 in 2025 to 23,000 in 2026.
Not all of the weekend’s races are sold out, however. Spots still remain open for the Motor City Half-Marathon and Marathon Team Relay, both taking place on Oct. 18, with all events on Saturday, Oct. 18, still available, as well.
And for those still hoping to run in the big Sunday races, marathon organizers say they will soon open up a waiting list.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Free Press Marathon tickets already sold out for 2026
Reporting by Christian Romo, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
