The hub aims to streamline licensing for sports and entertainment businesses while creating a collaborative ecosystem to accelerate industry growth.
Dubai will be home to ISEZA, the country’s first dedicated sports and entertainment business cluster operating within a Free Zone environment. The hub aims to streamline licensing for sports and entertainment businesses while creating a collaborative ecosystem to accelerate industry growth.
ISEZA will operate within the Dubai World Trade Centre Free Zone, providing a unified platform for businesses across established sectors including sports management, marketing, event management, talent representation and media broadcasting, the Dubai Media Office (DMO) said in a statement on Tuesday.
The zone will also support emerging areas such as e-sports, AI-driven sports technology and fan tokens. Dubai’s sports industry currently contributes approximately $2.5bn annually to the Emirates’ economy. The new zone joins over 40 Free Zones across the UAE, each focusing on different industries.
“The launch of ISEZA within the DWTC Free Zone will foster a dynamic ecosystem, empowering sports and entertainment businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurs to thrive. ISEZA members will benefit from our award-winning Free Zone’s prime location in the heart of the city’s business district, streamlined business setup and access to valuable networking opportunities through our diverse events and exhibitions calendar. By attracting sports and entertainment-focused businesses, we are reinforcing Dubai’s status as a global business hub and contributing to the growth of the sports sector in alignment with the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33),” Khaled AlFahim, Vice President of Asset & Investment Management at Dubai World Trade Centre said.
