Badminton World Superseries Finals to be held in Dubai for next four years

By Nick Butler

April 2 - A four-year deal has been signed between Dubai and the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to bring the World Superseries Finals to the Emirate for the next four years.

Under the agreement, described as an "exciting new multi-platform partnership", the finals will first be held in Dubai later this year from December 10 to 14.

This will mark the first time the series finals have been to the Middle East region.

First launched in 2007, the season-ending event features the eight players and pairs across singles, doubles and mixed doubles who have earned the most points at the 12 MetLife BWF World Superseries events held throughout the year.

Among those expected to qualify for the event at the Hamdan Sports Complex will be Malaysia's world number one Lee Chong Wei, who has won two of the three men's singles stages in 2014 so far, as well as Thailand's 19-year-old women's singles champion Ratchanok Intanon.

World number one Lee Chong Wei has won the last two stop of the BWF Superseries and will be a leading contender in Dubai ©ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images

"We are extremely happy to welcome Dubai and the sense of style which it brings to the MetLife BWF World Superseries," said BWF President Poul-Erik Høyer.

"Our tour is becoming increasingly popular and is televised throughout the year in more than 160 countries with a household reach of more than 300 million.

"Dubai's global connectivity, accessibility and track record in hosting world-class sporting events can only help us to grow the sport and make badminton even more accessible to fans."

As part of the agreement the BWF's grassroots programme Shuttle Time, currently operating in 65 countries worldwide, will also be launched in Dubai later this year.

This aims to encourage all people regardless of age, ability or fitness level to play badminton as a fun and social way of being more active.

Support about all aspects of the partnership was reiterated by Mattar Al Tayer, deputy chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, when he claimed "badminton is a sport that is open to everyone and there is already an active scene in Dubai".

He added: "The partnership with the BWF provides an exciting opportunity to build on that interest, to promote the sport to new levels and to develop grassroots initiatives such as Shuttle Time that will help to drive community engagement and physical activity across the city."

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