Difficulty
Marathon Index Score
Next Race
May 16, 2027
Get Your Training Plan
Free, personalized for this race
The Beer Lovers' Marathon is a festive 42.195 km road race through Liège, Belgium, held on a Sunday in mid-May. Its organisers describe it as friendly, festive and costumed, open to any motivated runner, and many entrants run in fancy dress. There are 16 aid stations along the course, each serving food and drink and a different Belgian beer, with a DJ or brass band at every stop; from the second half the stations add Belgian food such as fries, black pudding, cheese and waffles. Only the marathon is run, and the time limit is 6 hours 30 minutes. The 2026 edition started from the Liège Congress Centre on the Esplanade de l'Europe. The first edition, on 15 May 2016, ran from Place Saint-Lambert and was described by the organisers as a tour of Liège from the city centre to the Ravel path, past the citadel and the slag heaps. The race was modelled on the Marathon du Médoc in France; its founders met the Médoc team in Berlin in 2014. The weekend around the race includes a pasta party on the Saturday, an after party with an open bar, and a guided city tour on the Monday.
Typical climate for the race month — an estimate, not a forecast or a race-day record
Mid-May in Liège is mild: average highs are about 19°C and lows about 9°C, with rain of 1 mm or more on around 11 days of the month.
The Race
Liège
The organisers say the idea came in 2012, while running the Marathon du Médoc in France, where the costumes, brass bands and aid-station stops set the tone. In 2014, at the Berlin Marathon, they met the Médoc founders and began to plan a Belgian version, and in 2016 those founders promised to run it. The first Beer Lovers' Marathon took place in Liège on 15 May 2016.
At launch in 2016 the course offered tastings from 15 Belgian breweries; the current race has 16 aid stations, each serving a different Belgian beer. Each station has a DJ or brass band, and the second half of the course adds Belgian food such as fries, black pudding and waffles.
🏅 Create Your Beer Lovers' Marathon Diploma
Finished this race? Get a free certificate with celebrity comparisons & race day weather
Register Now
Official Website →
Are you the race organizer?
Free · Get featured on our homepage · Edit your race details
Get alerts for Beer Lovers' Marathon
Registration openings, date changes, sell-out warnings.