The beautiful game

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We report on why the UAE has become a centre of sporting excellence in the region.

Tiger Woods, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick are just a few of the major sporting names to have played in the UAE this year alone.

Gone are the days when UAE residents had to travel to Europe or the US to watch their sporting heroes in action.

Today the country's sporting events calendar attracts spectators from all over the world.

The opportunities to take part are growing, too, with sports-related real estate projects being developed across the country.

All this means that sport has become one of the country's fastest growing industries - worth billions of dollars and attracting strong interest from international investors.

The development of the UAE's sports market has been significantly bolstered by the high-profile sporting events that have become an annual fixture on the country's calendar.

Most recently Dubai hosted the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, in which both Justine Henin - playing one of her last professional matches - and the normally invincible Roger Federer suffered defeats, and Andy Roddick and Elena Dementieva were crowned champions, making it an event to rival the UK's Wimbledon tournament.

Meanwhile the annual Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens competition has gained such a following that in 2007 it attracted up to 32,000 fans a day from around the globe.

In total more than 70,000 people visited the event and now a new purpose-built venue is being created to host it.

The Dubai World Cup has become one of the world's top horseracing challenges, attracting elite fields and international headlines for offering the largest prize pot in the sport, totalling a staggering US$21.25m.

Dubai's reputation for holding world-class horseracing events will be cemented on the completion of the ambitious Meydan Racecourse.

The racecourse will span 76 million square feet and will feature state-of-the-art dirt and turf tracks and have the capacity to seat 60,000 people. The complex will also include a five-star hotel and more than 10 restaurants, and will house the Dubai Racing Club.

Motor racing, too, has become a major attraction with Bahrain having led the way in the region by staging the Gulf's first Formula One event four years ago. Today the Bahrain International Circuit can host 50,000 spectators.

Abu Dhabi is now set to host its own Grand Prix event in November next year, with a provisional date of November 15 having been set by the Fédération Internationale de L'Automobile for the event.

This will be the final race of the season and if it goes ahead will see the F1 title decided in Abu Dhabi. It will take place on a purpose-built track that is being constructed on the US$40bn Yas Island development alongside a Ferrari theme park featuring 24 rides and attractions.

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