For many years, the UAE was seen mainly as a glamorous travel destination. And also a top-class host of sporting events. But of late, many famous names have started to call Dubai and other emirates their home. Especially in the world of sports.
Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand did so recently after the likes of Patrice Evra had moved to Dubai. Tennis great Roger Federer has a property here while Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao received his golden visa last year.
In the world of cricket, England all-rounder Moeen Ali recently shifted base to Dubai, from where he now steers his franchise cricket career while also developing his coaching credentials.
And now Australian pace-bowling great Brett Lee has joined the star-studded group.
For former World Cup winner Lee, 49, told The National, Lee that while Australia will always be his home, Dubai is “incredible”.
“It happened pretty quickly in the end. I've been coming back and forth for the last 20 years, but mainly it's been a stepping stone to get to somewhere else.
"In February last year, I came over and I just embraced the place. I loved it, and I went and had a chat with my wife and the kids. Fast forward to June I'm over here full time. I've been here for about eight months.
“What captured the essence of me moving over was a number of things, [mainly] safety. This is one of the safest places in the world, especially for females and certainly for kids. The opportunity personally and from a commercial point of view over here is absolutely world class. And just the lifestyle.
“This was purely a decision that was made on opportunity, lifestyle and safety. Look, Australia will always be home. I'm a very proud Australian and I love where I've come from. But this is next level. This is incredible. ”
Lee has business and commercial interests in Dubai. He is the brand ambassador of Danube Properties and is also associated with investment company Yolo.
For the former pacer, sky is the limit in the UAE because the “country wants you to succeed”.
“From a professional and business point of view, it is astronomical what you can achieve here. The thing around the world is there's a lot of red tape when you're looking at setting up different opportunities. The thing with Dubai and UAE is a couple of factors. The first thing – it feels like the country wants you to succeed.
“You ask people for advice and help and they will bend over backwards to help you because everyone wants to win. Everyone wants to get ahead in life.
“I have a couple of key commercial partners over here. One in the property space through Danube. Their chairman Rizwan Sajan who started Danube … he came from India with next to nothing, had to scrap his way in sales, and then he's built this multibillion dollar empire in Dubai. I'm their global ambassador. I am proud to say that. That was a major reason for the move. We've bought our property through Danube now, which is very exciting.”
Even so, moving halfway across the globe with your family can be demanding. Lee says his wife Lana and three children could not be happier.
“Well, [family] to me is the most important thing. The one thing I'm proud to say is that the family have absolutely enjoyed every single moment of it. My wife loves the area, loves the place, so do my three children [aged six, 10 and 19]. The two younger ones are at school and they've taken to it like duck to water.
“It's been a seamless transition, which you don't really often see. The fact that at the school there are 200 different nationalities … they're not just learning about school, learning about life and learning about cultures.
“We're about to experience our first Ramadan. My son and daughter are going to play dates with different cultures from all around the world – South African, Australian, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Italians.
“It's so inclusive over here and I just love that they feel totally safe and totally comfortable. The education is absolutely first-class. The teaching is first-class. The chance to further their sporting skills is next level.
“My youngest boy is in a football academy. My daughter has opened up a whole new area of her life where she's into singing and drama and stage productions. We've seen a whole new side of her that we never really even knew and maybe that wouldn't have been awoken if we were back in Australia.”
According to Lee, athletes from across the world will flock to the UAE in bigger numbers. And while there aren’t many Australian cricketers who are based here, he urged them to consider it.
“I would, hand on heart, say ‘give it a go’. I think what you'll find over the next couple of years, you'll see a lot of, not just cricketers, you'll see a lot of sports people from around the world that will move to Dubai. Why? Because it's the hub.
“Certainly, in terms of cricket now, this is going to be the hub of cricket, if it's not already. The infrastructure, the facilities, the opportunity to learn, the coaching opportunity that's here in Dubai. And UAE in general.
“Back in Australia when you think about taxes, you might play 10 years of cricket and you give five years away and you think to yourself ‘how's that happened?’ Over here, you can get ahead a lot more quickly.
“What we will see in the next two to three years, we'll see a massive influx of not only former sports people, even current sports people, move here.”
