28 April 2009
The UAE has a long history of hosting international cricket. During the heydays of cricketing in Sharjah, they held nearly 200 One Day International matches and Abu Dhabi, which got on to the cricketing bandwagon in 2004, has hosted 17 international matches since then and Dubai which has the privilege of being the headquarters of the ICC has held two ODIs ever since the stadium in the Dubai Sports City was inaugurated a few days ago for the Australia-Pakistan Series.
Emirates Business decided to find out if cricket is a driver for tourism to and from the region and spoke to some of the people in the travel and airline industry and the cricketing world to find out what they think.
Maurice Flanagan, Executive Vice-Chairman, Emirates Group, told Emirates Business: "There has been a slight increase in the number of bookings leading into the on-going Australia-Pakistan Series and I am sure that in the future we will see further increases as more cricket matches take place at the new venue at Dubai Sports City.
"Cricket has a global following involving billions of passionate fans, so when you couple this with the non-stop services that Emirates offers from over 100 destinations on six continents to Dubai, I am sure that cricket fans will be looking to come here to watch world-class action."
The airline recently strengthened its commitment to sports and to cricket by becoming the title sponsor of the Kings XI Punjab team. Kings XI is one of the eight competing cricket franchises of the Indian Premier League, which is owned by actress Preity Zinta and businessmen Ness Wadia among others.
Emirates Holidays, the destination and leisure management division of Emirates airline is offering packages from various destinations in India to Johannesburg (via Dubai). The package includes three nights accommodation on a twin-sharing basis with breakfast, Meet and Assist at the airport, transfers to airport/hotel/airport on seat-in-coach basis. Talking about the impact of the ongoing Indian Premier League matches in South Africa on their business and about the sponsorship of the Kings XI, Flanagan said: "Emirates is offering special fares from its 10 destinations in India to Johannesburg and Cape Town, via Dubai.
"We are experiencing a healthy response in terms of airline bookings to South Africa. With cricket being the number one sport in India, it was only natural for us to form a partnership with one of the leading teams in the Indian Premier League the Kings XI and also the IPL, which is a tournament that invokes such passion amongst the cricket fans all around the world.
"As an Official Partner of the ICC, Emirates is able to reach out globally to supporters of cricket which numbers well over two billion; we are involved in all ICC tournaments which includes the 2011 and 2015; ICC Cricket World Cups, ICC Champions Trophy, ICC World Twenty20, ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, ICC Under-19 World Cup, ICC Intercontinental Cup and the ICC Women's World Cup.
"In partnership with the ICC, we also sponsor the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and Referees. This agreement will see the Fly Emirates logo prominently displayed on the umpires' clothing at all ICC events."
Malco Rodricks, an industry veteran, who heads the Apollo Flight Centre has been in the travel business for over 20 years in the UAE now.
Having seen the country go through various peaks and troughs, Rodricks told Emirates Business that the draw of Dubai will never recede, no matter what the global economic scenario.
"The cricket happening here with Australia and Pakistan is probably bringing back the Sharjah days of cricket, which at the time was a huge tourism boost for the UAE. Only this time, Dubai is going to be the hub. Sports tourism is something that is clearly ripe for the picking in terms of promotion within the UAE.
"Tourism from the UAE is increasingly moving towards Asia and Australia and New Zealand, and we have been focusing on that a lot. However, with the IPL now in South Africa and the 20/20 World Cup in England in June, it has opened up a new stream of revenue for us. This is why we have been quick to work out packages, which for the IPL in South Africa come at Dh5,000 for four nights and five days, all inclusive. The World Cup packages could get even more competitive given the huge cricket following based out of Dubai."
Tanvir Khawaja, Managing Director, Arabian Air Travels told Emirates Business: "Cricket is a great driving force for tourism. Especially for this region because people from the India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are absolutely crazy over cricket and their fans will go wherever the tournament is held.
"However, if the matches are held in places like the UAE, which have a close proximity to the Indian sub-continent, instead of far off places like South Africa, it will be better because more people will be able to come to the UAE to see the matches as they are just three to four hours away from their countries."
James Fitzgerald, spokesman for the ICC said: "We had intended to hold the World Cup qualifiers in Dubai in April but unfortunately at that time the facilities were not ready. We also hosted the ICC Awards in Dubai in September and we are also building the ICC Cricket academy in Dubai Sports City. Once that is done it will not only benefit the Dubai players it will also benefit the country as it will bring teams from all over the country and also talent from the region. We will also be holding more matches in the region in the future and the Emirates Cricket Board, which is an associate member of the ICC, has expressed its interest in holding international cricket matches in the country in the future so the future looks bright."
The UAE has a long history of hosting international cricket. During the heydays of cricketing in Sharjah, they held nearly 200 One Day International matches and Abu Dhabi, which got on to the cricketing bandwagon in 2004, has hosted 17 international matches since then and Dubai which has the privilege of being the headquarters of the ICC has held two ODIs ever since the stadium in the Dubai Sports City was inaugurated a few days ago for the Australia-Pakistan Series.
Emirates Business decided to find out if cricket is a driver for tourism to and from the region and spoke to some of the people in the travel and airline industry and the cricketing world to find out what they think.
Maurice Flanagan, Executive Vice-Chairman, Emirates Group, told Emirates Business: "There has been a slight increase in the number of bookings leading into the on-going Australia-Pakistan Series and I am sure that in the future we will see further increases as more cricket matches take place at the new venue at Dubai Sports City.
"Cricket has a global following involving billions of passionate fans, so when you couple this with the non-stop services that Emirates offers from over 100 destinations on six continents to Dubai, I am sure that cricket fans will be looking to come here to watch world-class action."
The airline recently strengthened its commitment to sports and to cricket by becoming the title sponsor of the Kings XI Punjab team. Kings XI is one of the eight competing cricket franchises of the Indian Premier League, which is owned by actress Preity Zinta and businessmen Ness Wadia among others.
Emirates Holidays, the destination and leisure management division of Emirates airline is offering packages from various destinations in India to Johannesburg (via Dubai). The package includes three nights accommodation on a twin-sharing basis with breakfast, Meet and Assist at the airport, transfers to airport/hotel/airport on seat-in-coach basis. Talking about the impact of the ongoing Indian Premier League matches in South Africa on their business and about the sponsorship of the Kings XI, Flanagan said: "Emirates is offering special fares from its 10 destinations in India to Johannesburg and Cape Town, via Dubai.
"We are experiencing a healthy response in terms of airline bookings to South Africa. With cricket being the number one sport in India, it was only natural for us to form a partnership with one of the leading teams in the Indian Premier League the Kings XI and also the IPL, which is a tournament that invokes such passion amongst the cricket fans all around the world.
"As an Official Partner of the ICC, Emirates is able to reach out globally to supporters of cricket which numbers well over two billion; we are involved in all ICC tournaments which includes the 2011 and 2015; ICC Cricket World Cups, ICC Champions Trophy, ICC World Twenty20, ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, ICC Under-19 World Cup, ICC Intercontinental Cup and the ICC Women's World Cup.
"In partnership with the ICC, we also sponsor the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and Referees. This agreement will see the Fly Emirates logo prominently displayed on the umpires' clothing at all ICC events."
Malco Rodricks, an industry veteran, who heads the Apollo Flight Centre has been in the travel business for over 20 years in the UAE now.
Having seen the country go through various peaks and troughs, Rodricks told Emirates Business that the draw of Dubai will never recede, no matter what the global economic scenario.
"The cricket happening here with Australia and Pakistan is probably bringing back the Sharjah days of cricket, which at the time was a huge tourism boost for the UAE. Only this time, Dubai is going to be the hub. Sports tourism is something that is clearly ripe for the picking in terms of promotion within the UAE.
"Tourism from the UAE is increasingly moving towards Asia and Australia and New Zealand, and we have been focusing on that a lot. However, with the IPL now in South Africa and the 20/20 World Cup in England in June, it has opened up a new stream of revenue for us. This is why we have been quick to work out packages, which for the IPL in South Africa come at Dh5,000 for four nights and five days, all inclusive. The World Cup packages could get even more competitive given the huge cricket following based out of Dubai."
Tanvir Khawaja, Managing Director, Arabian Air Travels told Emirates Business: "Cricket is a great driving force for tourism. Especially for this region because people from the India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are absolutely crazy over cricket and their fans will go wherever the tournament is held.
"However, if the matches are held in places like the UAE, which have a close proximity to the Indian sub-continent, instead of far off places like South Africa, it will be better because more people will be able to come to the UAE to see the matches as they are just three to four hours away from their countries."
James Fitzgerald, spokesman for the ICC said: "We had intended to hold the World Cup qualifiers in Dubai in April but unfortunately at that time the facilities were not ready. We also hosted the ICC Awards in Dubai in September and we are also building the ICC Cricket academy in Dubai Sports City. Once that is done it will not only benefit the Dubai players it will also benefit the country as it will bring teams from all over the country and also talent from the region. We will also be holding more matches in the region in the future and the Emirates Cricket Board, which is an associate member of the ICC, has expressed its interest in holding international cricket matches in the country in the future so the future looks bright."
By Reena Amos Dyes
© Emirates Business 24/7 2009
