DUBAI // Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger has made no secret of the fact he is in the market for a new striker this transfer window, yet even the Premier League leaders’ most ambitious fans must have performed a double-take as they perused the internet yesterday afternoon.
“Pele jets into the Emirates,” read one website headline; “Pele signs on at the Emirates,” read another.
The latter is slightly misleading as the greatest striker to ever play the beautiful game has not agreed to play at the North London club’s ground. Instead, the Brazilian has signed on with Emirates Airline as a global ambassador.
The Dubai-based carrier has long been involved in sports sponsorship deals, most famously that of Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium. Yet yesterday’s announcement that the 73 year old will represent the airline around the world in the build-up to this summer’s World Cup in Brazil, is only the second instance of a tie-up with an individual athlete.
The three-time World Cup winner did jet into the Emirates as he was chauffeured around Dubai making appearances, garnering publicity and undertaking photoshoots. Few people can put Burj Khalifa in the shade, yet Pele gave it a go.
Before that though, he posed with Sheikh Majid Al Mualla, the divisional senior vice president of commercial operations at Emirates, who introduced him as “Brazil’s king of football and a global icon: recognised, respected and idolised by people around the world – including me”.
Pele, addressing the media in English, spoke briefly of his recent honorary Ballon d’Or award, as well as his thoughts on the Messi-Ronaldo debate and his expectations of this summer’s showpiece.
None of it proved particularly explosive, yet it is Pele and so, by default, it is newsworthy.
“I am an emotional guy,” was his explanation as to why he cried while receiving his honorary award earlier this week. “In my time, we didn’t have the Golden Ball and I never played in Europe, so it was the only trophy missing in my home.”
At the same ceremony, Pele had presented a similarly tearful Cristiano Ronaldo with the 2013 Ballon d’Or award, however, he yesterday hailed Lionel Messi as the best in the world.
“Now it is Messi, no doubt,” he said. “He has been the one playing at the top for the past few years. Now we have Cristiano Ronaldo, who has a different style, is a great goalscorer and an excellent player, but Messi is the player who has been more consistent over the past few years.”
Pele helped Brazil win the ultimate prize in international football in 1958, 1962 and 1970, and has said in the past he expects his country to reach the final in July.
The main threat to his country winning a sixth title, he said, will come from Europe. “Brazil was always a strong team in attack,” he said.
“This year though is the first time the team is well prepared in midfield and back. My opinion, six months before the World Cup final, is that the best teams are Spain and Germany.
“They are the two most organised teams, but you must also respect the traditional teams like Italy, England, Portugal and Argentina.”
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
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Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
