Featured image credit: Ninoksha Maria/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has signed a multi-year deal with the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) and the Dubai Sports Council (DSC) to stage several major events in the city.
The partnership will see Dubai’s Coca-Cola Arena host the Champions Series World Title event on January 25. The event will be headlined by a fight between undefeated Bellator lightweight world champion Usman Nurmagomedov and Ireland’s Paul Hughes. Bellator was acquired by PFL in November 2023.
PFL said its deal with the DET and the DSC will see Dubai become a “marquee destination” for the promotion. All other Champions Series events will also be co-branded as the ‘Road to Dubai’, while PFL will support Emirati fighters to aid the development of MMA in Dubai.
His Excellency Saeed Hareb, secretary general of the DSC, said: “This agreement will be the beginning of creating a new generation of champions in sports who will raise the UAE’s flag in various international forums, through launching various training programmes and forming an Emirati martial arts team to bring them up to a standard of participation at international championships.
“Through this agreement, Dubai Sports Council will provide all means of support to ensure the success of the first-of-its-kind International Martial Arts Championship Series (Road to Dubai) in the Middle East, which represents a qualitative addition to the list of international sporting events and enhances sports tourism.”
PFL chief executive Pete Murray added: “The Professional Fighters League is proud to be the first organisation to launch major global MMA events in Dubai. We are excited to partner with Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism and Dubai Sports Council to stage annual mega events in the city of gold and develop the next generation of UAE champion fighters.”
The deal strengthens the United Arab Emirates’ status as a major host of MMA events. The country’s capital, Abu Dhabi, hosted its first Ultimate Fighting Championship event in 2010, and last year the promotion extended its longstanding events deal with the city.
The expanded contract between UFC and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) runs until 2028 and also takes in the wider Middle East and North Africa region. UFC will take one numbered event featuring a championship bout to Abu Dhabi every year.
Earlier this year, PFL staged its first event in the Middle East as the Saudi capital of Riyadh hosted PFL vs Bellator Champions as part of the Riyadh Season festival. Saudi-based SRJ Sports Investments owns a minority equity ownership stake in PFL.
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