The man charged with taking the UAE from "level zero" to becoming a respected rugby nation at international level has cautioned against expecting too much too soon.
Ian Bremner, the first chief executive of the nascent Rugby Association (RA), has only been in situ for six weeks, but he already does a nice line in Dubai-speak.
When tasked with assessing the challenge facing his organisation, he relates it to construction. He may be able to see the Burj Khalifa, that towering monument to UAE ambition, from the front of the association's offices in Diyafah, but it does not prompt him to indulge in blue sky thinking.
"We have to get the foundations of the house down before we decide how many stories we want to build," Bremner, 60, said this week. "The more people who come in, the more floors we can build, but in the early days we can't say we are going to do things that we can't do. We can't make promises and then not deliver."
When the RA officially assumed governance of the game from the Arabian Gulf Rugby Football Union at the start of this season, its ambitions were grand.
They immediately adopted the slogan of "Road to Olympics 2016", referring to their plan to enter a side into qualifying for the sevens competition for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil.
However, Bremner, who left a similar role in Singapore to pilot the new era of Gulf rugby, believes the Games will come too soon.
As per Olympic rules, only Emirati passport holders are able to represent the UAE, and few nationals play rugby at present. The UAE team who will run out in a Test for the first time next weekend is likely to be all expatriate.
"The organisation already had a plan when I arrived, but we are now very clear on what we have to do," Bremner, a former director of rugby at Exeter, the English Premiership club, said. "At this point in time we have no credit with a travel agent, we have no financial systems in place - we are at level zero in terms of a small business.
"[The RA's vision] is about become a highly respected sport which governs its game well domestically and achieves international success. That is pretty encompassing. It is not Rio 2016, because that is unrealistic. At this point in time, we have got to get a reputation in terms of administration for being well organised, effective, dynamic, ambitious. We want all of our representative teams to be within the top five in Asia. In terms of governance and finance, we want to become a respected organisation within UAE sport, in Asia and in world rugby."
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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.
Naga
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Price, base / as tested From Dh173,775 (base model)
Engine 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo, AWD
Power 249hp at 5,500rpm
Torque 365Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Gearbox Nine-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined 7.9L/100km
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
MATCH INFO
Group B
Bayern Munich v Tottenham, midnight (Thursday)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
'HIJRAH%3A%20IN%20THE%20FOOTSTEPS%20OF%20THE%20PROPHET'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEdited%20by%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Idries%20Trevathan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20240%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hirmer%20Publishers%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')
Manchester City 3 (Gundogan 18', Foden 21', De Bruyne 34')
Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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