Zwift Racing League 2024/25 Round 1 Details

Intro to Zwift Racing League (ZRL)

ZRL is the world’s largest virtual cycling competition. How big is it? Over 36,000 riders participated in the 2023/24 season, making it the biggest season on record!

Organized by WTRL, this is a team-based points competition spread across multiple weeks, with teams organized into divisions based on time zones and ability. Races happen every Tuesday, and the season is broken into three 6-week rounds with short breaks in between.

ZRL is Zwift racing at its highest level. Its unique structure and varied race formats drive serious Zwift racers to show up week after week while providing a place for new racers who jump in and find their first team home.

This page contains the latest info about the current ZRL round, and is updated as WTRL announces new details.

Route Design Contest

For the first time in Zwift’s history, a unique chance is being offered to Zwifters to design a route. The chosen route will be used for the final race of round 1, and will also become available to all Zwift users in the future!

Read all about the contest here >

Ruleset Updates

If you’re new to ZRL, you’ll definitely want to get familiar with the ruleset and scoring structure, as these inform strategic team decisions.

There are no rule updates for round 1 at this time, but scoring is changing somewhat. Here are the new details:

• FAL points: the first 20 across the line now score (1st gets 20, 2nd gets 19, down to 20th getting 1) vs the top 10 scoring in previous rounds
• FTS points: unchanged – fastest 10 score, 10 points down to 1
• FIN points: at the finish line, points are issued based on number of riders beaten (ie field of 50, 10th place = 40 points). There are also podium bonus points: 1st = 5, 2nd = 3, 3rd = 1.

Timeslots and Divisions

Some divisions and start times get tweaked between each round, so make sure you pick the time slot that works for your team.

Teams and Registration

ZRL is a team-based competition – you cannot sign up as an individual rider. Teams can have up to 12 racers rostered, but only 6 can race in each event. Teams must have at least 4 riders on their roster, and a rider can be rostered on no more than 2 teams per round.

Team registration opened on August 2 at wtrl.racing/zrl-registration.

Want to race, but don’t have a team? Here are six ways to find a team:

1. Recruit friends onto a new ZRL team, then sign up your team at wtrl.racing/zrl-registration/.
2. If you’re already a member of a larger Zwift Club, contact a senior Club representative to see if you can join one of your Club’s ZRL teams.
3. Join an official team-lead ZRL Group Recon Ride where several teams can be found looking for more riders. These run several times a day starting two weeks before the first race. Learn more >
4. Join the ZRL Facebook Group and post preferred race times/league, Pace Group Category, and any other preferences under the #zrlteamhunt tag where many teams are eagerly waiting.
5. Reply to one of the #zrlrecruiting posts that teams make in the ZRL Facebook Group if you don’t want to post your own request.
6. Reach out directly to WTRL and they can match you to a team based on race times, category, and team preferences.

Race Routes and Dates

Each ZRL round comprises weekly races which are either scratch races, points races, or team time trials (TTT). Scratch Races and Points Races are both actually points-based in terms of final results, but Points races include intermediate segments while Scratch Race points are all earned at the finish line. TTT winners are the teams who complete the race course fastest, with team time taken from the fourth rider across the line.

Race #1: Douce France
September 10, 2024 (TTT)

We start with a TTT this round, on a route familiar to ZRL racers. It’s not a particularly technical TTT route, but you will need to work to keep it together on Les Intestins at the start, and up the Aqueduc KOM!

• 1 Lap of France’s Douce France (24.8km, 136m elevation)
• PowerUps: none 🛈

Race #2: Sugar Cookie
September 17, 2024 (Points Race)

A new route for ZRL (as are the rest of the routes this round!), Sugar Cookie starts with four sprint sections in quick succession, then throws in a spicy VO2 climb up to the Epic KOM cutoff road that will surely force the race’s key selection.

• 1 Lap of Watopia’s Sugar Cookie (39.2km, 260m elevation)
• PowerUps (in order of arches): Aero, Aero, Aero, Aero, Feather 🛈
• Intermediate Segments:
  • Stoneway Sprint (FAL)
  • Acropolis Sprint (FTS)
  • Sasquatch Sprint (FAL)
  • Woodland Sprint (FAL)

Race #3: Country to Coastal
September 24, 2024 (Scratch Race)

This is a fairly flat route… except when it isn’t! There are no KOM sections here, but the opening climb to the start/finish, plus the climbs up to the Shisa Sprint and up through the slot canyon will all prove decisive when it comes to sprint FAL segment points and overall finishing points.

• 1 Lap of Makuri Islands’ Country to Coastal (33.6km, 280m elevation)
• PowerUps: Feather (33%), Draft Boost (33%), Aero Boost (34%) 🛈

Race #4: Greater London 8
October 1, 2024 (TTT)

Our second TTT of the round starts off fairly flat, then takes riders over Box Hill. It’s an uncharacteristically climby route for a TTT that will test your w/kg while challenging teams’ abilities to stay together.

• 1 Lap of London’s Greater London 8 (24.3km, 280m elevation)
• PowerUps: none 🛈

Race #5: Glyph Heights
October 8, 2024 (Points Race)

The Queen Stage of this round, Glyph Heights has an uphill finish and includes three official KOM segments. The longest climb of the race isn’t even an official segment, though: it’s the upper half of The Grade followed by the last 3km of the Epic KOM!

• 1 Lap of Watopia’s Glyph Heights (34.0km, 618m elevation)
• PowerUps: Feather (80%), Draft Boost (20%) 🛈
• Intermediate Segments:
  • Itza KOM (FAL+FTS)
  • Mayan Mountain (FTS)

Race #6: BRAE-kfast Crits and Grits
October 15, 2024 (Scratch Race)

For the first time ever, Zwift + WTRL hosted a contest for Zwifters to design a custom race course for this event. And we have a winner! Click route below for details…

• 1 Lap of Scotlands’s BRAE-kfast Crits and Grits (22.1km, 245m elevation)
• PowerUps: Feather (60%), Draft Boost (20%), Ghost (20%) 🛈

Tips for First-Timers

If this is your first time racing on Zwift, here are a few tips to get you started fast:

1. You have to be signed up for ZwiftPower to participate. Instructions >
2. You must create a WTRL account as well – do so at wtrl.racing/registration
3. The minimum category you’ll race is determined by your power history on Zwift. See this post for details.
4. Riders must use a power sensor to transmit power to the game – this would be a smart trainer, smartbike, or power meter. (You’re allowed to race C and D categories with a “classic” trainer and virtual power, but your points are cut in half.)
5. Heart rate monitors are required. (You’re allowed to race without a HRM, but your points are cut in half.)
6. Cadence monitors are required (new rule for Round 2).
7. You’ll want to have at least a few races under your belt before you try to join a team, so you are confident that you’re in the correct category. It causes a lot of hassle if you join a team, and then are forced to upgrade to a new category mid-round.

Recons and Broadcasts

Official Recon Rides

If you’re unfamiliar with a particular week’s race course, join a ZRL recon ride! These happen multiple times per day and are led by experienced racers who may share route info and racing tips as you ride.

You can find a list of upcoming ZRL recon rides at zwift.com/events/tag/zrlrecon.

Live ZRL Broadcasts

Select ZRL races will be broadcast with commentary on Zwift’s streaming channels, including YouTube.

2024/25 ZRL Season Dates

• Round 1: Sept 10-Oct 15, 2024
• Round 2: Nov 12-Dec 17, 2024
• Round 3: Jan 14-Feb 18, 2025
• Finals: Apr 8-22, 2025

Questions or Comments?

We recommend checking out WTRL’s Zwift Racing League page for rules, team registration, results, and more. They also have a Help Center with lots of useful info, and their Facebook page is the place to go for discussion of all things ZRL.

You may also share questions or comments below!