Gerard Pique may be known for his football talent, but he’s about to showcase his skills on the basketball court instead.
The Spaniard is in the UAE capital to participate in a hybrid basketball-football match. It will be held during Fan Appreciation Day at Etihad Arena on Saturday as part of the NBA Abu Dhabi Games weekender. He’ll compete alongside other football greats such as Ronaldinho, Thierry Henry, Luis Figo, Iker Casillas and Roberto Carlos. Although there’s some tough competition, how does Pique think he’ll fare?
“I don't know the level of the other players," he says with a laugh during an exclusive interview with The National. "Let's see, I'm one of the best, for sure but I don't know if I'm the best."
While he may not be as confident in his basketball ability, Pique found success making a name for himself as a top-notch defender for Barcelona and the Spanish national team. Even though it was football that brought him success, he says he’s always been a basketball fan and even played when he was a child before he ultimately chose to pursue football.
“When I was very young, I was playing football and basketball at the same time. Finally, I decided to go for football,” he says. “It was my decision, but basketball is another sport that I like, and I follow NBA matches.”
His favourite team is the Los Angeles Lakers, who he admits “aren’t having the greatest time” but credits another fellow renowned athlete as to why he enjoys watching them anyway. “I think that LeBron [James] is a machine. He’s 39, still playing at the top level, so it's amazing.”
Since retiring from playing professionally in 2022, Pique has kept busy. While he’s made headlines for a messy split with former partner Shakira, he has found some peace in having more control over what he does in his daily life.
“You change your whole routine. Instead of training in the morning, you do other things or other stuff. But in general, I'm pretty happy,” he says. “Now it's two years after retirement, and I can say that I'm busy, I'm doing a lot of things and I like this life.”
This new life includes creating the King’s League, a seven-a-side football competition that combines the sport with new entertainment formats. He launched the league in January last year and it is currently in its second season.
The league has unique rules such as unlimited substitutions, a golden card system (that provides advantages such as a penalty kick or removing an opposing player for two minutes) and sin bins where players can be temporarily sent off for certain offences.
former Barcelona football player
Matches are live-streamed on platforms such as Twitch and YouTube and feature a mix of ex-professional players and influencers. The idea behind it is to reach a younger audience who are consuming sports entertainment differently. He is proud of how far the league has come, with selling out stadiums as a sign of its popularity.
“I cannot say more good things than this, because at the end of the day, it's been a hell of a journey," he says. "We've sold out stadiums like Camp Nou [Barcelona's stadium] and Atletico Madrid's stadium.”
Following the success of the league’s inaugural season, there are plans to expand. The World Cup is happening for the first time in January and will have Italy playing Spain, Germany and so on.
He adds: “It's the first time that we are doing a competition like this. And after that, we will launch a few leagues in February in different countries, Europe and Brazil. At the end of the day, what we want is to create, really an ecosystem of them, to have big leagues the best team from each league qualifies for the World Cup of clubs that will happen in June.”
Any chance for the league to come to the UAE one day? “We're in conversations,” he says. “We would love to have a league here, like a regional league in Mena, and I hope for next year, we can bring it here.”
In the meantime, as King's League fans in the region await the arrival of a new team to support, Pique is in Abu Dhabi for basketball. Inspired by stars like James, who still competes at a high level despite his age, Pique maintains a strong bond with football, stemming from his illustrious career on the pitch. So, could he ever see himself returning to the field?
“Not really. I love to compete and have that adrenalin of really trying to win,” he says. “When you are at a club like Barca, your obligations are to win every game, and you're playing every three days. At the end of the day, you are exposed to a lot of pressure, but it's fine. It was a great journey.”
Fan Appreciation Day is at Etihad Arena on Saturday, door opens at 3pm, event starts at 4.30pm
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
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UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
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Defence review at a glance
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Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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THE BIO
BIO:
Born in RAK on December 9, 1983
Lives in Abu Dhabi with her family
She graduated from Emirates University in 2007 with a BA in architectural engineering
Her motto in life is her grandmother’s saying “That who created you will not have you get lost”
Her ambition is to spread UAE’s culture of love and acceptance through serving coffee, the country’s traditional coffee in particular.
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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The five pillars of Islam
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2.
3.
4.
5.
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Banned items
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Drones
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Animals
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Fireworks/ flares
-
Radios or power banks
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Laser pointers
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Glass
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Selfie sticks/ umbrellas
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Sharp objects
-
Political flags or banners
-
Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Our legal advisor
Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation.
Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.
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Your rights as an employee
The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.
The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.
If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.
Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.
The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.
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Scoreline
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Jebel Ali Dragons 20
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'Worse than a prison sentence'
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“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
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The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
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Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks
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