“Dubai’s Economic and Tourism Departments Join Forces with Professional Fighters League to Establish the City as a Premier Destination for MMA” 

Groundbreaking multi-year partnership includes Professional Fighters League (PFL) staging major annual global MMA events dubbed “Road to Dubai” and developing future UAE champion fightersDubai’s first Champions Series World Title event will be held Saturday, January 25 at Coca-Cola Arena, headlined by undefeated Bellator Lightweight World Champion, Dagestan’s Usman Nurmagomedov versus rising Irish contender Paul HughesDubai, United Arab Emirates – November 20, 2024: Dubai is set to host the Champions Series World Title event, following the signing of a groundbreaking multi-year partnership between the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), Dubai Sports Council (DSC), and the Professional Fighters League (PFL).The event will take place on Saturday, January 25, 2025, at Coca-Cola Arena, located in Dubai’s City Walk, and is headlined by the returning “Pride of Dagestan,” undefeated Bellator Lightweight World Champion, Usman Nurmagomedov (18-0). He will look to defend his title against Ireland’s Paul “Big News” Hughes (13-1) who is coming off the biggest victory of his MMA career at PFL “Battle of the Giants” after defeating AJ McKee.The first-of-its-kind partnership will see MMA world champions and the sport’s biggest stars from the PFL compete in title fights as Dubai becomes a marquee destination for the best of MMA. All other Champions Series events will now be co-branded as “Road to Dubai”, as each show culminates to the finale set in the new fight capital. As part of the PFL’s commitment to developing the sport of MMA in Dubai, rising Emirati star fighters will now have a pathway to become future PFL Champions.His Excellency Saeed Hareb, Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council, said: “We are pleased to cooperate with the Department of Economy & Tourism and the Professional Fighters League to attract and develop talented athletes in martial arts. 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,” he added.“This championship aims to attract a large number of young people and will receive wide attention from the public and local and international media, as organizing this international championship contributes to enhancing diversity in sports and enriching the list of rich sporting events hosted by Dubai throughout the year. This championship will be a successful model of cooperation and integration between