Omar Abdulrahman could be playing alongside superstars like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney in December as the Al Ain and UAE ace has received an invitation from the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) for a charity match between Brazil and a Rest of the World side.
Abdulrahman is the only Arab player invited for the match, which will be held at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
Messi’s Barcelona teammates Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta, Ronaldo’s Real Madrid teammate Karim Benzema, the France and Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery and the Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech are some of the other stars who are expected to line up for the Rest of the World.
Abdulrahman is excited about receiving the invitation, which was delivered to him through the UAE Football Association.
“This is a great honour for me, especially since I am the only Arab player invited for the game, which will receive considerable media attention,” Abdulrahman told the Arabic daily Emarat Al Youm.
“The feeling is indescribable. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. An opportunity to play a match like this, alongside international stars, does not come often and I hope I can leave an honourable impression of UAE, Gulf and Arab football.
“It will also be a great learning experience for me and I cannot wait for December to arrive.”
Abdulrahman has forwarded the invitation to his bosses at Al Ain club and is hoping to get a positive response from the club.
“December is going to be a very busy month for the team, but I still hope Al Ain will approve my visit to Brazil for this historical match,” he said. “It is an opportunity that will not come very often. I will be representing the country and my club there, and bringing attention to the football here. So I am confident the management will have no problem in allowing me to travel to Brazil.”
arizvi@thenational.ae
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Lampedusa: Gateway to Europe
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In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
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yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
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Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
