Opportunity for 800 new charities to take part in London Marathon with new bond scheme

London Marathon Events (LME) has launched its New Charity Bond Scheme, which will enable 800 new charities to become part of the TCS London Marathon from 2026 onwards.

The New Charity Bond Scheme is the result of a review that culminated in changes originally announced in 2021, which – to give existing charity partners time to plan ahead – would take effect from the 2026 TCS London Marathon.

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There will be two types of Bonds under the new scheme: 

• Golden Bonds, with four entries per year for a four-year term 
• Silver Bonds, with two entries per year for a four-year term 

Charities that do not currently hold Bond entries in the TCS London Marathon can apply for any one of the following four options: 

• One Golden Bond (four entries per year for four years)   
• Three Golden Bonds (twelve entries per year for four years)  
• Five Golden Bonds (twenty entries per year for four years)  
• One Silver Bond (two entries per year for four years)  

Applications

A random ballot will be held to allocate the Bonds. Applications open today, Monday 11 November, and charities can apply here.

The closing date for applications is 23:59 on Tuesday 26 November and charities will be notified of the ballot results the week commencing 2 December. 

In addition, a Charity Ballot will be held annually offering 500 entries and open only to charities that do not hold any existing Bond entries or that are not successful in the New Charity Bond Scheme ballot. Applications for the Charity Ballot for the 2026 TCS London Marathon will open on Monday 2 December and close on Friday 13 December. Charities will be notified of the Charity Ballot results by Friday 20 December.  

Hugh Brasher, CEO of London Marathon Events, said:

“The New Charity Bond Scheme is the culmination of years of work following extensive consultation with our existing charity partners. The TCS London Marathon is the biggest annual one-day fundraising event in the world and we have worked hard to ensure that we can bring in the maximum number of new charity partners while continuing to support our existing partners who have raised so much from the event over the years. We look forward to welcoming 800 new charities to the London Marathon family in 2026.”

Charity entry costs & conditions

From the 2026 event, as previously announced, Golden Bonds for existing holders will be brought into line with the New Charity Bond Scheme, with the number of annual places in each bond reduced from five to four and the five-year term reduced to four years. The current Silver Bond scheme, which offered one place every five years, will be phased out after the 2025 event.

The cost of a charity entry in the 2026 TCS London Marathon will increase to £400 + VAT from 2026 (up from £370 + VAT) and this will be the first increase since 2021. 

Any unused entries may be rolled over for one year but, if not used the following year, will expire with no refund. 

The next review of the Bond Scheme will take place in 2029 with any changes introduced for the 2033 London Marathon. 

Brasher added: 

“Many of our charity partners depend on money raised by participants in the London Marathon to fund their work so we need to work many years in advance to enable our charity partners to plan ahead.”

About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.