Your complete guide to the London Marathon – and a free drink if you complete it!
The grit and determination. The blood, sweat and tears. The hours of training. The days spent pounding the pavements. Not only is the London Marathon one of the most iconic sporting events in the UK, it’s also a feat of human endurance.
And it’s on the horizon soon. At the end of April, the streets of London will flood with runners, spectators and professional athletes. The finish line will swell with 40,000 people taking part, all with their own personal goals whether simply finishing or breaking a world record.
And we’ll be throwing open the doors of our London Marathon pubs to celebrate. Our pubs in the capital will have marathon fever and some of our sports pubs around the UK will be showing the action on our big screens.
To celebrate, we’re covering everything you need to know about the big race, as well as guiding you on your very own marathon course across the capital with our London pubs along the route. Plus, we’ve also got a special treat for you if you’re running the London Marathon and visit one of our pubs after…
Free drink when you complete the London Marathon
You read that right. If you complete the 2025 London Marathon, you can head to one of our 128 participating Greene King pubs in London and get a drink on the house. In a doff of our hat to everyone who finishes the marathon, you can choose from a selection of € Aperol Spritz, Peroni Nastro Azzurro (draught), Peroni Nastro Azzurro 0.0 (packaged), CleanCo Clean Blood Orange Spritz or any softs such as Coca-Cola or Schweppes Lemonade.
All you need to do is bring your medal, ID, and proof of your result on the official London Marathon website to claim your free drink. And what’s more, you can take up this offer from Sunday 27th April to Thursday 1 May, just in case you have somewhere else to be after the race.
Crawl don’t run
We can’t all be supreme athletes ready to take on the challenge of 26.2 miles. But we can turn out to support our friends and the other willing runners. And you can enjoy a few beers along the way too.
At our London Marathon pubs, we’re all about local ales, delicious wines and quality food. We love the atmosphere of a good sporting event, whether it’s happening on the streets outside our doors or on the TV in one of our sports pubs. Some of our pubs will be showing the London Marathon on our Sky Sports and TNT Sports screens, and we have plenty of food and drink offers to tempt you too.
Best pubs on the London Marathon route
Looking for some pubs to create your very own pub crawl? We have almost two dozen pubs on the London Marathon route, and these are some of the best.Pub at the start of the London Marathon route
The YachtMake your way to the Yacht in Greenwich for the start of your London Marathon pub crawl. Our riverside pub sits right on the Thames, offering incredible views across the water out of its picture windows. You can even bring the kids and your dog along too, if race day is a family affair.
Pubs along the London Marathon route
The Salt Quay
Whether you’re watching the action on the streets or tuning into the TV coverage, dive into the Salt Quay in Rotherhithe on your London Marathon pub crawl. With a unique look inside and out, our atmospheric pub serves up incredible views from its patio and first-floor dining area. As well as cask ales and hearty food that’s fit for a champion.The Prospect of Whitby
Set alongside the river in Wapping, the Prospect of Whitby is one of the oldest riverside taverns in London. Step inside onto the 400-year-old stone floor and rest your weary legs – it’s time for a pitstop along your epic London Marathon crawl. Settle in with traditional surroundings for a refreshing drink, with stunning riverside views for company.
The Monument
One of the best pubs along the London Marathon route, the Monument in Whitechapel is a sports pub with everything you need for a great day out. The beer garden is just perfect on a sunny April day too.
The Maple Leaf
Yes, it’s the London Marathon, but that doesn’t mean you can’t go all Canadian for a pint or two with a trip to the Maple Leaf. Grab a Canadian beer and some Canadian light bites at our welcoming pub in Covent Garden. The question is, do you have it in you to make one final push on your London Marathon pub crawl?
Pub at the end of the London Marathon route
The Two ChairmenWhether you’ve actually run the race or put yourself through your paces on a pub crawl, the Two Chairmen in Westminster is the ideal place to unwind and soak in the atmosphere after a thrilling London Marathon.
Our historic pub is right next to St. James’s Park and promises original beams and traditional vibes. Plus, it has comfy seats to flop onto to rest your tired legs and hearty traditional pub food to re-energise and restore even the most tired of competitors. We’re sure you’ll agree, it’s one of the best pubs near the London Marathon finish.
When is the 2025 London Marathon?
The 2025 London Marathon takes place on Sunday 27th April. Everyone from elite runners to first timers will be slipping on their running trainers and hitting the streets of London across 26.2 miles.
The start line is in Blackheath, with runners sailing past the Cutty Sark, gliding over Tower Bridge and sliding through Canary Wharf before finishing on the Mall in front of Buckingham Palace for one of the most epic finishes in the world of running. The course is relatively flat too. In fact, it’s technically a downhill course, with a total elevation gain of around 127m (419 feet) and elevation loss of 162m (531 feet).
So, when does the race start? Well that all depends on the category of entrants. Start times work like this:
- Elite Wheelchairs: 8:50am
- Elite Women: 9:05am
- Elite Men: 9:35am
- Mass event: 9:35–11:30am
The last runner in the mass event will cross the start line at 11.30am to begin their epic quest for marathon glory.
All runners that make the finish line on the Mall bag themselves a winners medal to show off for years to come, as well as a few other goodies and freebies too, alongside some recovery snacks and a silver blanket. But probably the most important thing is the sense of achievement of finishing one of the most famous marathons on the planet.
So, how long does the London Marathon last? Runners get eight hours to complete the marathon. If you can’t make it during this time but want to continue, you need to move onto the pavement for safety reasons. But there will be a team on hand to help you make it all the way to the finish line. And possibly to point you in the direction of one of our London Marathon pubs.
Running through history
You might be used to settling in to watch the London Marathon on the BBC every year. Or maybe at the pub. Or perhaps you’ve thrown on your trainers and pounded around the 26.2-mile course before. Either way, it feels like it’s an event that’s always been run in London. It’s such an iconic part of the sporting landscape in the UK.
But it had to start somewhere. And that first ever starting line happened on 29th March 1981. Due to safety reasons, just 7,747 runners were accepted to run in the first ever race – despite 22,000 people applying to take part.
Of the runners that entered, there were 6,255 finishers. The first across the line were American Dick Beardsley and Norwegian Inge Simonsen. The two runners crossed the finish line hand-in-hand in the rain on Constitution Hill. They did it in a time of two hours, 11 minutes and 48 seconds.
Not only did this create a friendship that has lasted a lifetime, but London and Britain were well and truly bitten with the marathon bug. These days, more than 40,000 people – made up of amateur runners and professional athletes – race around the course each year.
Ready, set, landmarks
The London Marathon route has remained largely unchanged since the first ever race in 1981. The biggest changes have been with the finish line.
We’ve already mentioned the first race finished on Constitution Hill. The finish was moved to Westminster Bridge the following year in 1982. It remained there until 1994 when it was moved to its current home on the Mall. Other slight changes involved running around the Isle of Dogs anticlockwise instead of clockwise and dropping the section around St. Katherine’s Docks.
Today, the route is 26.2 miles in line with marathon requirements. It starts in Blackheath and finishes on the Mall. London landmarks along the way include:
The Cutty Sark
Tower Bridge
Big Ben
Buckingham Palace
Canary Wharf
In record time
While for many runners the London Marathon is an amateur event all about beating a personal best, creating lasting memories and raising money for charity, it’s also a competitive event for professional athletes.
And these world beaters have set plenty of world records and created memorable moments on the London Marathon course, including:
- Norway’s Ingrid Kristiansen won four women’s titles in the 1980s. She’s the only woman to achieve this feat.
- Grete Waitz – also from Norway – became the first London Marathon world record holder in 1983, with a time of 2:25:29.
- Ingrid Kristiansen then bettered that two years later with 2:21:06.
- Paula Radcliffe broke the world record twice – in 2003 she ran a time of 2:15:25 in a mixed marathon, which is still a record to this day.
- In 2017, Kenya’s Mary Keitany became a world record holder with her time of 2:17:01.
- Peres Chepchirchir became the women’s only world record in London in 2024, with a time of 2:16:16.
The spectator effect
Not only do the runners make the London Marathon such a special occasion, we wouldn’t be where we are today without the people who line the streets to watch the event every year.
An estimated 750,000 people turn out each year to cheer on the runners come rain or shine. They truly make it what it is today, and we’re always happy to welcome supporters along to our London Marathon pubs.
And all those people aren’t just showing their support by clapping, shouting and cheering. In 2024, a total of £73.5 million was raised through sponsorship.
Yes, it’s the runners who are doing the hard work and busting a gut to keep on going along the streets of London. But it’s their supporters, family, friends, colleagues and more, who are helping rack up that sponsorship money.
Let’s raise a glass to everyone involved with making the London Marathon the charity powerhouse it is today.
Join us at Greene King
The London Marathon is the epitome of hard work and dedication. Hats off to the 40,000 runners willing themselves around the course.
Let’s drink to the supporters helping raise so much for charity. And let’s not forget the professional athletes setting record after record. We’re raising a glass – and giving out drinks – for one of the most famous races in the UK, and welcoming you all to our London Marathon pubs in the capital and beyond.
Whether you’re looking for the best pubs to watch the London Marathon, a runner who’s just crossed the finish line and claiming your free drink or a supporter heading to one of our London pubs along the course, make sure you join us on the big day.
We’ll see you soon. Medals are optional.