Global sporting superstars Cristiano Ronaldo and Novak Djokovic are no strangers to accolades - and now they are gearing up for another golden era thanks to the UAE.
The world famous duo are the latest recipients of the country's golden card residency scheme, according to local media reports.
Juventus footballer Ronaldo has spent plenty of time soaking up the sun in the UAE in recent years and met up with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, during a Christmas break in the emirate.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United striker is a serial winner at the annual Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai, while Serbian tennis ace Djokovic is a firm fixture at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the Mubadala World Tennis Championships in Abu Dhabi.
Both international icons will be afforded the chance to stick around the country for longer after securing ten-year residency visas.
The golden card is a long-term residency programme announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, in May of last year. Not long after its launch, more than 400 investors and businesspeople, including some of their families, had already been granted the visa, with dozens more receiving it each day.
Sheikh Mohammed said 6,800 investors and residents, worth an estimated Dh100 billion, and from 70 countries, were chosen to receive the visa.