If you’ve been to a park on a Saturday morning lately, you’ll have seen them. Groups of friends running laps, then dropping for lunges and burpees between each one. They’re not just getting fit. They’re training for a race.
That race is probably Hyrox. The format is simple: eight 1km runs, each followed by a workout station such as a sled push, rowing or wall balls [2]. Every event uses the same course, so anyone can compare their time with anyone else in the world.
Since its 2018/19 season Hyrox has grown from around 5,500 athletes to more than 1.5 million [1][4]. Britain has been at the heart of it.
We’ve already written about the UK running boom. Fitness racing is its louder, sweatier cousin, and it’s pulling in the same people: those who want a goal, a group and a reason to get out of the door. Here is what’s happening, who is taking part and what brands need to know for 2027.
The fitness racing boom in numbers
Hyrox began in Germany, and its first event drew around 650 people [3]. The growth since has been remarkable.
- 2018/19: around 5,500 athletes [4]
- 2022/23: around 175,000 athletes across more than 60 races [3]
- 2024/25: more than 500,000 athletes [4]
- 2025/26: more than 1.5 million athletes and over 200 days of racing [1]
- 2026/27: more than 2 million athletes expected across 107 race weekends on six continents [1]
The UK story is just as striking. The first London event in September 2021 had 532 competitors. A year later it sold out with 4,500 [5]. By December 2025, Hyrox London at ExCeL was expected to welcome more than 40,000 athletes and over 30,000 spectators across four days, the biggest event in the sport’s history at the time [2].
The gym network has grown with it. Hyrox has more than 1,700 affiliated gyms in the UK and over 11,000 worldwide [2]. That means thousands of places where people train for the race every week, long before they reach a start line.
Hyrox isn’t the only name in the space either. ATHX, which started with a handful of UK events, passed 10,000 participants in the first half of its 2026 season. DEKA has three UK weekends on its 2026 calendar [4]. Fitness racing is now a category, not a single brand.
Who is racing?
The short answer is ordinary people. That is the whole point.
- Most are first timers. Around 70% of participants are doing their first Hyrox [3]. Every event is full of people who have never raced anything like it before.
- They are not all twenty somethings. There is strong representation among athletes aged 30 and over, and the share of women is rising steadily [3]. The 2026 World Championships in Stockholm had more than 7,000 athletes aged 16 to 79, from over 100 countries [11].
- They come with friends. You can race solo, in doubles or as a relay team [2]. Doubles and relays lower the barrier and turn a race into a shared weekend.
- They train in a community. Affiliated gyms run Hyrox classes all year, so the event is the peak of months of training together.
- Families are joining in. Hyrox Youngstars, a version for children and teens, is now a permanent fixture. At its second London event, 22% of junior racers had a parent competing in the adult race [10].
If that sounds like parkrun with sleds, you’re not far off. It’s the same mix of personal challenge and belonging that we explored in what is a 360 running campaign. People want something to train for and someone to train with.
The brands already in the race
Big brands have noticed. In the last two years fitness racing has gone from niche sponsorship to a serious commercial platform.
- Puma is the global apparel and footwear partner and has extended its deal to 2030 [8]. Its chief executive has called Hyrox a “lighthouse” partnership [9].
- Amazon signed a global partnership in 2026, with dedicated storefronts, playlists and in person activations [6][7].
- Amazfit holds the wearables role in a three year global deal [7].
- Myprotein, Red Bull and BYD are partners too, covering nutrition, energy drinks and electric cars [9][12].
- Lexus became vehicle partner for Hyrox North America for 2026/27 [6].
- Beauty and lifestyle brands including Biotherm and Maybelline have joined too [9].
- Adidas has launched a shoe aimed at fitness racing and partnered with rival series ATHX [6][9].
Investors are following. A consortium led by L Catterton has taken a majority stake in Hyrox, in a deal that reportedly valued it at around $700 million [6][12]. Hyrox is also now recognised as a discipline under World Triathlon, and its founders talk openly about the Olympics [2].
The spread of sectors is the interesting part. Sportswear and supplements you would expect. Cars, skincare, make up and online retail tell you the audience is broad, loyal and worth reaching.
What brands need to know for 2027
You don’t need a global sponsorship budget to be part of this. These are the six things we’d keep in mind. They are our view, based on the numbers above and what we see working across sport.
1. The race is one day. The story is 12 weeks.
Most athletes train for months. That build up is where the real content is: the early mornings, the first sled push, the nerves the night before. Brands that follow people through the whole journey earn far more attention than those that only turn up on race day. Our piece on athlete documentary content explains why these stories build such loyal audiences.
2. First timers are your audience
With around 70% of the field new to the sport [3], the most useful content answers beginner questions. What to wear, how to pace, what it feels like. Helpful beats heroic. Feature real people of different ages and abilities, not only elite athletes.
3. Go local through gyms and run clubs
With more than 1,700 affiliated gyms in the UK [2], there is almost certainly one near your customers. Partner with a gym or run club on a training block, a team entry or a community event. It’s affordable, measurable and far more personal than a banner in an arena.
4. Built for short form video
Fitness racing is loud, fast and full of emotion. It was made for vertical video. Capture the effort, the high fives and the finish line and you have weeks of social content from a single day. Plan your shots before you arrive. Our guides to filming a sports event and short form vs long form video will help.
5. Doubles, relays and families widen the net
Team formats and Youngstars [10] bring in partners, colleagues, parents and children. That opens the door to workplace wellbeing campaigns, charity teams and family focused brands. Think about who is racing together, not just who is racing.
6. It’s a category now, so pick your lane
With Hyrox, ATHX, DEKA and others all growing [4], brands have options at different sizes and price points. A regional event with a smaller series might suit a challenger brand better than a corner of a 40,000 person weekend. For the wider context, see our sports marketing trends for 2027.
What to do next
If you’re a brand, gym or event organiser looking at fitness racing for 2027, here is where we’d start:
- Go and watch one. Nothing explains the appeal like standing by the finish line for an hour.
- Find your people. Look for the gyms, run clubs and customers in your world who are already training.
- Pick one story to follow. A first timer, a doubles pair or a workplace team. Film the journey, not just the race.
- Plan the content before the day. Decide what you need for your website, ads and social, and brief your film and photo team around it.
- Stay after the finish. The weeks after an event, when people are sharing times and signing up again, are when they’re most open to hearing from you.
Fitness racing has given a huge number of people in Britain a reason to train, a team to train with and a finish line to aim for. We think that’s brilliant, and it deserves to be captured properly.
At Floom Creative we film and photograph sport, and help brands and events turn it into campaigns that work. Take a look at our sports marketing, sports video production and sports photography pages, or get in touch and tell us what you’re planning.
References
- BOXROX (July 2026). HYROX Expands Global 2026/27 Season to 2 Million Athletes and 107 Races. https://www.boxrox.com/hyrox-expands-global-2026-27-season-to-2-million-athletes-and-107-races/
- endurance.biz (December 2025). HYROX prepares for largest ever race at London ExCeL, and unveils London Week of Fitness featuring HYROX Youngstars in 2026. https://endurance.biz/2025/industry-news/hyrox-prepares-for-largest-ever-race-at-london-excel-and-unveils-london-week-of-fitness-featuring-hyrox-youngstars-in-2026/
- Infront (2026). HYROX: from a disruptive fitness race to a global mass participation powerhouse. https://www.infront.sport/blog/participation-sports/hyrox-from-a-disruptive-fitness-race-to-a-global-mass-participation-powerhouse
- Hybrid Fitness Media (May 2026). ATHX Growth Continues as Fitness Racing Expands Across Europe. https://hybridfitnessmedia.com/2026/05/19/athx-growth-continues-fitness-racing-expands-europe/
- Health Club Management. Fitness racing company Hyrox sees UK gym affiliation scheme jump from 18 to 120 in one year. https://www.healthclubmanagement.co.uk/health-club-management-news/Fitness-racing-company-Hyrox-sees-UK-gym-affiliation-scheme-jump-from-18-to-120-in-one-year/350601
- Athletech News (September 2026). Lexus Gets In on Fitness Racing Boom With Hyrox Deal. https://athletechnews.com/lexus-hyrox-sponsorship-fitness-racing/
- SGI Europe (2026). HYROX strikes global retail deal with Amazon. https://www.sgieurope.com/fitness/hyrox-strikes-global-retail-deal-with-amazon/122808.article
- SGB Media (2025). Puma Extends Partnership with Hyrox Series to 2030. https://sgbonline.com/puma-extends-partnership-with-hyrox-series-to-2030/
- SGI Europe (2026). HYROX becomes a brand battlefield. https://www.sgieurope.com/consumer/hyrox-becomes-a-brand-battlefield/119782.article
- SGI Europe (2026). Kids join the race: HYROX Youngstars goes permanent. https://www.sgieurope.com/sporting-events/kids-join-the-race-hyrox-youngstars-goes-permanent/121156.article
- BoxLife Magazine (2026). HYROX Just Tripled to 1.5 Million Athletes. https://boxlifemagazine.com/hyrox-surpasses-crossfit-sets-olympic-sights/
- Sportcal (2026). Hyrox announces partnership with Boss Parfums. https://www.sportcal.com/?p=154373
