Dubai Company Committed To More Than $160M European Tour Deal

Property development company Nakheel this week will confirm its "intention to honour" a US$163.9M five-year deal with the European Tour that "has been in question because of the economic downturn," according to Paul Kelso of the London TELEGRAPH. The deal had been "thrown into doubt by the financial crisis, and particularly the explosion of the property bubble that has driven Dubai's rapid development." The deal, which saw the European Tour Order of Merit renamed the Race to Dubai and a $10M end-of-season Dubai World Championship, was "initially signed by Leisurecorp, a division of Nakheel" and was "intended as a promotional tool for the Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai." But the economic downturn "placed the entire prospect in jeopardy last autumn, and in March this year Leisurecorp was subsumed into the parent company Nakheel, which instituted a review of all its commitments." Nakheel Leisure Managing Dir Hamza Mustafa confirmed that the deal has been "under review," but he said that Nakheel "would honour the terms of its original commitment." Kelso notes "rescuing the Race to Dubai deal represents a coup for the European Tour and bucks the recessionary trend that is hitting golf at all levels." Meanwhile, RBS, one of six R&A patrons, "has another year left" on its deal with the R&A, but with RBS "committed to cutting 90[%] from its sponsorship budget a renewal cannot be taken for granted" (London TELEGRAPH, 7/15).

RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD: CRAIN'S CLEVELAND BUSINESS' Joel Hammond reports the future of Bridgestone's commitment to the WGC Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, "seems safe past next August, when the tiremaker's title sponsorship agreement ends." Bridgestone Americas Exec VP/Community & Corporate Relations Christine Karbowiak: "It draws an international group of golfers and has an international reach. That's a big draw for us." Karbowiak added that the tournament "offers the company a chance to showcase both of its brands: Firestone as its tire arm, and Bridgestone, which she said is gaining ground in the golf equipment industry." PGA Tour Exec VP/Communications & Int'l Affairs Ty Votaw said the discussions are "progressing along the timeline that we thought they would" (CRAIN'S CLEVELAND BUSINESS, 7/13 issue).