Dubai to become global sporting capital

Dubai has all the necessary ingredients to become a world sporting capital and attract a new breed of leisure travellers in search of active holidays, according to Al Gosling, CEO of the Extreme Group, who addressed the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference last month.

"Scenic locations, sun and sand are no longer the only magnets for today's holidaymakers," said Gosling, who believes a growing number of travellers are looking for "active holidays".

Gosling stated that current figures indicate that there are 165 million extreme sports participants worldwide, making it "one of the fastest growing market sectors in both the sports and leisure arenas".

"Already Dubai has plans to host major sports events and we believe this will attract interest from sports travellers and sports hospitality investors, if properly marketed," he said.

At the centre of these plans for sports tourism domination is Dubai Sports City, which last month announced the signing of contracts for the design and construction of two major sporting venues, a 60,000-seat outdoor stadium and a 10,000-seat multi-purpose indoor stadium.

These AED 830 million (US $226 million) projects, a joint venture between Arabtec and Max Bögl, are due for completion in 2009 and will complement Sport City's 25,000-capacity cricket stadium and a 5000-seat hockey stadium, which are due for completion early next year.

"The two venues will enable Dubai to host international football, rugby, and athletics events," said U. Balasubramaniam, chief executive officer, Dubai Sports City.

"The venue will be capable of hosting concerts and other major public gatherings," he added.

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