Global Fútbol

After consistent growth over eight years, LaLiga has moved its headquarters for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, a world leading Free Zone and Government of Dubai Authority on commodities, trade and enterprise.

Following the move, LaLiga plans to take its commercial growth in the region to the next level, deepening engagement with local football fans, increasing participation in football and raising brand awareness. 

Of the league’s 11 global offices that it operates outside of Spain, its first headquarters was opened in Dubai in 2013. Since then, LaLiga’s MENA operation has become one of the most prominent overseas leagues in the region. It has built a social media following of 24 million and has struck 20 different collaboration agreements with government bodies, football leagues and federations in the MENA region, as well as leading telecom brands such as Orange and Asiacell.

On top of this it has trained over 2,500 male and female footballers in its LaLiga Academy UAE, which follows LaLiga’s unique playing methodology and is overseen by LaLiga UEFA-Pro certified coaches. This initiative was recently recognised among the winners of the prestigious SPIA Asia Awards.

LaLiga’s growth in the region looks set to accelerate as MENA’s influence on the global sports industry is expected to increase over the next three to five years, with a recent PwC study predicting almost nine percent growth of its sports-business by 2026.

Feryal Ahmadi, Chief Operating Officer, DMCC, said: “LaLiga joining DMCC is a great example of the strong international ties that we have established over the years. Our deep-rooted networks, alongside the range of world-class services and facilities, continue to attract world-leading organisations to Dubai. We’re also proud to be supporting an organisation that promotes health and wellbeing amongst the community, so we look forward to working with LaLiga to help them grow their operations in the MENA region.”

Growth of the DMCC
LaLiga will join over 19,000 companies in benefiting from the range of leading facilities and services offered by DMCC, all of which aim to increase the ease of doing business. 

LaLiga joining DMCC follows a record-breaking April in 2021, which saw 216 new businesses join the free zone, the highest recorded number for April in 7 years. Q1 2021 was also the free zone’s best performance in seven years, with international outreach to key markets including Europe, China and India bringing new companies to Dubai.

Maite Ventura, Managing Director for MENA, LaLiga, said: “By providing us with a first-class office space and all the business services we need, DMCC are making it easier for us to achieve our goals – get people involved with football and ultimately attract the next generation of sports fans to LaLiga. Success for us is seeing more young people playing the game, whether in our academies or out at their local park. It is about creating a sustainable football culture, and we feel DMCC is the perfect place for us to achieve that.”