UAE has emerged as a hub of sports tourism – just look at the 2020 calendar


Nick March
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It has been a busy year of sport in the UAE and Abu Dhabi in particular.

Last weekend, the city hosted the Adnoc Abu Dhabi Marathon, at the beginning of December the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was won by Lewis Hamilton and next week the Mubadala World Tennis Championship returns to the emirate for its 12th edition.

But this is no late-year flourish. In early 2019, the city hosted Asian Cup matches at three football stadiums and Abu Dhabi staged one of the largest and most successful World Games in the history of the Special Olympics. Athletes from up to 200 nations participated and anyone who took part, spectated or volunteered can attest to the infectious energy and incredible spirit that coursed through the country in March.

The two tournaments have been on an informal collision course for years, with the Dubai Sevens traditionally being scheduled around UAE's National Day weekend and F1's calendar pushing into late November

There is no doubt that the succession of sporting events delivered by the city this year – including the ever-green HSBC Golf Championship, the star-studded T10 cricket league and the drama of UFC 242, among others – have helped showcase Abu Dhabi at its best and underline its ability to successfully host a wide range of events.

Last month, the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi collected a World Travel Award in Muscat on behalf of the city, which was recognised in the "World's Leading Sports Tourism Destination" category. Auckland, London, Seoul and Tokyo were some of the other contenders for the award, which considered not only the ability to stage and host major events but also the broader sporting infrastructure and facilities available to visitors.

Sports tourism is regarded as a fast-growing market sector globally and the DCT sees it as a “key area of development” for Abu Dhabi, according to Ali Hassan Al Shaiba, the department’s executive director of tourism and marketing.

Reflecting that ambition, next year’s calendar in just as full and throws up an interesting domestic fixture clash for sports tourists in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Grand Prix weekend begins on Friday, November 27, while the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens kicks off the previous day on Thursday, November 26. The annual rugby tournament will wrap up on Saturday, November 28, while the F1 race is staged on the following day.

The two tournaments have been on an informal collision course for years, with the Dubai Sevens traditionally being scheduled around UAE’s National Day weekend and F1’s calendar pushing into late November.

The Dubai Sevens is rightly recognised as one of the best stops on the 10-city world rugby tour. AFP
The Dubai Sevens is rightly recognised as one of the best stops on the 10-city world rugby tour. AFP

It was expected that the events would have a date clash this year, only for the Sevens to announce it would run its 50th anniversary tournament a week later than normal. We now know that they will overlap for the first time in 2020.

Both occasions are special parts of this country's sporting calendar. Two of its crown jewels. Anyone who spends any time at either Yas Marina Circuit over F1 weekend or the Sevens ground during its three-day festival of rugby will attest to the high-quality and superb staging of the events. The Dubai Sevens is rightly recognised as one of the best stops on the 10-city world rugby tour. The Abu Dhabi F1 sets a benchmark for other circuits to aspire to in terms of facilities and visitor experience.

Both weekends showcase the country in the most favourable light at a great time of year and many tourists vow to return to both F1 and the Sevens once they have experienced either for the first time.

While some will question hosting two prestige events on the same weekend, I think there is a solid logic for creating what will be a four-day carnival of top-class sport across two emirates.

The conventional wisdom used to say that you couldn’t or shouldn’t run two big events over the same weekend but as that sports tourism award confirms, the country now competes with the very best and should be unapologetic about the fixture congestion. The UAE is ready and able to stage two of its best events simultaneously.

This time next year, another very special event will be underway, with Expo 2020 Dubai bringing an estimated 25 million visitors to these shores between October 2020 and April 2021. Other developments, such as the cruise ship season growing ever larger each year in Abu Dhabi and Dubai also add to the sense that with record numbers of tourists choosing to spend time in the UAE, they will be looking for unique or interesting trips to make during the course of their visit. What could be more engaging that a "big weekend of sport" across two emirates and four days for both first-time and returning visitors?

For residents, I suspect, it will be an autumn of doing things differently, with many shuttling between the Sevens Ground and Yas Marina Circuit, particularly on the Friday and Saturday of both events, as they seek to catch the highlights of both occasions. Tourists, meanwhile, will be spoilt for choice.

This year, both events were largely cashless environments with spectators putting credit on wristbands to pay for food and drink. A wish for next year’s big weekend of sport would be for both venues to use the same cashless system to make the visitor experience near seamless.

Nick March is an assistant editor-in-chief for The National

FIXTURES

Monday, January 28
Iran v Japan, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)

Tuesday, January 29
UAEv Qatar, Mohamed Bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)

Friday, February 1
Final, Zayed Sports City Stadium (6pm)

Scoreline:

Barcelona 2

Suarez 85', Messi 86'

Atletico Madrid 0

Red card: Diego Costa 28' (Atletico)

A MINECRAFT MOVIE

Director: Jared Hess

Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa

Rating: 3/5

The biog

Favourite Emirati dish: Fish machboos

Favourite spice: Cumin

Family: mother, three sisters, three brothers and a two-year-old daughter

The Settlers

Director: Louis Theroux

Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz

Rating: 5/5

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Dubai World Cup Carnival Thursday race card

6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m
7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m​​​​​​​
7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m​​​​​​​
8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m​​​​​​​
8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m​​​​​​​
9.25pm: Handicap $135,000 (D) 1,400m
10pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

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