After claiming their second Barclays Premier League title at a rain-soaked Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon, players and officials from Manchester City will arrive in sun-drenched Abu Dhabi this morning ahead of their Thursday night friendly match in Al Ain.
Sceptics of the Manchester club, which is owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, point to City’s enormous investment in player acquisition and a wage bill that is reputed to be the highest in world sport, to suggest the club has bought success rather than earned it. The doubters also believe that City’s triumphs are built on sand.
The truth is somewhat different. For one thing, success can rarely be guaranteed on a football field, no matter how much money you throw at it. But, as well as investing in the first-team, City have poured money into long-term youth development and community programmes. Later this year the club will open the first phase of its Etihad Campus, a 32-hectacre site that is breathing new life and jobs into an area of Manchester that, little more than a decade ago, was a decaying reminder of economic decline. It is, in short, a regeneration project that is transforming the fortunes of a community just as dramatically as City’s on-pitch revolution.
Company profile
Company: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
Sector: Clothes rental subscription
Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
The specs: Aston Martin DB11 V8 vs Ferrari GTC4Lusso T
Price, base: Dh840,000; Dh120,000
Engine: 4.0L V8 twin-turbo; 3.9L V8 turbo
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic; seven-speed automatic
Power: 509hp @ 6,000rpm; 601hp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 695Nm @ 2,000rpm; 760Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.9L / 100km; 11.6L / 100km
Company profile
Name: Cashew
Started: 2020
Founders: Ibtissam Ouassif and Ammar Afif
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: FinTech
Funding size: $10m
Investors: Mashreq, others
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
FIXTURES
New Zealand v France, second Test
Saturday, 12.35pm (UAE)
Auckland, New Zealand
South Africa v Wales
Sunday, 12.40am (UAE), San Juan, Argentina
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.
ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
Scoreline:
Barcelona 2
Suarez 85', Messi 86'
Atletico Madrid 0
Red card: Diego Costa 28' (Atletico)
Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Investment required: $500,000
The Specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 118hp
Torque: 149Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Price: From Dh61,500
On sale: Now
EMILY IN PARIS: SEASON 3
Created by: Darren Star
Starring: Lily Collins, Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, Ashley Park
Rating: 2.75/5
The Iron Claw
Director: Sean Durkin
Starring: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Maura Tierney, Holt McCallany, Lily James
Rating: 4/5
'Cheb Khaled'
Artist: Khaled
Label: Believe
Rating: 4/5