Dubai committed to enhance its status as global sports hub: Sheikh Mansoor

Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council (DSC), reaffirmed that Dubai is always looking to evolve as a leading destination for prestigious international sporting events and extravaganzas, building upon its remarkable reputation for successfully organising and hosting global showcases in various sports.

An impressive lineup of international sporting championships awaits sports aficionados in Dubai through the year, with top international athletes, clubs, and national teams competing for top honours.

Dubai also routinely plays host to massive numbers of fans of sporting outfits from across the UAE and overseas and unfailingly attracts global partners who implicitly trust the emirate’s capacity to organise and deliver the most eminent and unforgettable sporting spectacles.

Dubai boasts an abundance of positives required for the ultimate success and excellence of such global events, whether in terms of unmatched infrastructure or the availability of distinctive training facilities and fascinating locales framed against magnificent tourist attractions and iconic urban landmarks.

Sheikh Mansoor said Dubai, as always, was ready to welcome the world while ensuring splendid experiences for all competitors and fans alike.

“The organisation of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup next February in Dubai for the second time in the championship’s history after the remarkable hosting of the event in 2009, reaffirms FIFA’s trust in the boundless abilities of Dubai and the UAE to organise a unique and historic edition of this championship.

“The immense joy and satisfaction expressed by representatives of participating teams who attended preliminary events and the competition’s main draw attest to the remarkable global repute of Dubai and the keenness of various participants to experience what the city has to offer while connecting with their legions of local fans.”

Dubai will also play host to the 6th edition of the Sail Grand Prix Championship, the preeminent sailing event in the marine sporting calendar. The emirate is to host the event for the second successive year after the stupendous success of the previous edition. The Sail Grand Prix will kick off from December 9–10 at Rashid Port under the ‘Emirates Dubai Grand Prix Sailing Race’ banner.

The announcement of Dubai —hich will be the sixth stop in Season 4 — will take the league to a record 13-event calendar, the largest in the league’s history.

Fans will get to witness SailGP’s revolutionary F50 foiling catamarans racing just metres away from the shoreline and in view of some of Dubai’s globally recognized attractions at Mina Rashid.

The Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix is set to bring back the cutting-edge racing that thrilled fans in 2022 at a sold-out event as world-class teams representing Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States compete for the title.

Mina Rashid will offer fans an exhilarating vantage point to experience the high-speed foiling F50 catamarans racing before their eyes. Over two days and five races, ten national teams will compete for points, leading to a final showdown determining the event’s winner among the top three teams.

He made these remarks during a meeting he chaired of the DSC Board at the council’s premises in the presence of Mattar Al Tayer, Deputy Chairman of DSC; Saeed Hareb, DSC’s Secretary-General; Naser Aman Al Rahma, Assistant Secretary-General of DSC; and members of the Board, including Maryam Al Hammadi, Sami Al Qamzi, and Jamal Al Marri.

The meeting also reviewed the reports of the DSC’s permanent committees, namely the Development Committee, Women and Sports Committee, Investment Committee, and Football Companies Development Committee.

The committees submitted detailed reports on the progress of their respective plans of action to be ratified by the DSC’s Board.

Sheikh Mansoor directed the respective committees to continue to deliver excellent results in every area of their work and to ensure constant improvements across all aspects of the sports sector in Dubai.

A number of other matters listed on the meeting’s agenda also came up for discussion, with appropriate decisions taken to enhance the sports sector’s contributions at the community and economic levels.