Courting Catalansto the capital
It is Saturday and the Spanish sun is setting. Alfredo Querol, a driving instructor who, when he is not teaching young Catalans how to operate heavy goods vehicles, enjoys nothing more than watching the World Rally Championship with his family, is visiting the WRC service park at Port Aventura.
He observes the mechanics working frantically on drivers' championship leader Mikko Hirvonen's Ford Focus before checking his watch, aware he must be home for 8pm to catch his beloved FC Barcelona take on Almeria in Primera Liga.
Alfredo, like the majority of the men and women in Catalonia at the weekend, was subject to the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority's latest charm offensive.
The ADTA have identified western Europe as the No1 target for their promotional campaign to market the UAE capital. Through Rally de Espana – where Abu Dhabi sponsor Hirvonen's BP-Ford team – and the Red Bull Air Race in Barcelona – where champion Hannes Arch represents "Team Abu Dhabi" – the city achieved widespread promotion in eastern Spain. Alfredo, whether he is aware of it or not, was exposed to intense branding.
"This weekend has been all about Abu Dhabi – from the beachside in Barcelona to the mountains here," said ADTA deputy director general Ahmed Hussein, relaxing in the BP-Ford paddock in Salou. "All the things happening this weekend support our tourism platform, which is perfect timing with the Club World Cup just around the corner."
The Spanish invasion could not have come at a better time for the emirate. With 10 weeks remaining until FC Barcelona make the trip to the UAE to compete in the Fifa Club World Cup, Abu Dhabi was perfectly poised to promote itself to the Spanish public; to court Catalans to the capital.
With neither Etihad nor Emirates flying direct to the UAE from Spain, tempting travellers to make the trip has been undoubtedly more difficult. But with an estimated 500,000 spectators having turned out over two days to witness the Red Bull Air Race in Barcelona, and traffic being backed up for five kilometres on the second of the three day Rally de Espana 90km to the south, the distinctive Arab brand got plenty of airtime.
Hussein was quick to ensure the ADTA capitalised on the large turn-outs, with both Emirati driver Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi of BP-Ford and Austrian pilot Arch of Team Abu Dhabi being deployed to promote the city to local motorsports fans.
Al Qassimi performed his recce with a prominent Finnish television journalist riding shotgun, while Arch continued to garner attention due to his long-running battle with Paul Bonhomme for the 2009 title.
"Each weekend when there is racing, we engage with the community in different ways – through the media and through guests and local partners engaging with our drivers," said Hussein, who is also aware of the benefits of celebrity crossovers. When Ferrari Formula One driver Kimi Raikkonen took part in Rally Finland earlier this year, it not only opened the WRC up to a wider audience, it exposed the Abu Dhabi brand to new potential, he added.
"It is difficult to gauge the success of our sponsorships," said Hussein. "But we try to do it in different ways – it can be a media clipping from a newspaper, or a short TV clip, or simply from people-to-people contact, which tends to stay in their minds longer.
"The success is carefully studied: Marketing campaigns, roadshows, conferences... each one is measured differently to meet different target audiences and we are very satisfied – some of the results we have seen have been too good to be true."
The ADTA will not be resting on their laurels, however, insisted Hussein. Recent international press reports have praised and expectations on the emirate as it looks to become the centre of global sports and the ADTA deputy director general said that much like the drivers his organisation sponsor, he won't be taking his foot off the gas any time soon.
Major golf, football, tennis and motorsports events are all confirmed for the capital in the next three months and Hussein is ready to keep building in a bid to dominate for years to come.
"There is no stage when we will sit back and think we have done it," he said. "It will be in cycles; we will change and create new opportunities. It should always remain a young and dynamic destination. It will never be enough, but what is interesting is how we will maintain a sustainable organisation and remain fresh."
One possibility he has considered is the annual Tour de France, while Team Abu Dhabi Triathlon is the latest in a growing portfolio of sports sponsorships. UAE resident Troy Watson will represent the emirate in Hawaii this weekend as part of the Ironman World Championship and Hussein points to the success of the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge as an example of how the ADTA is using both internal and external initiatives to build knowledge of its brand.
"The Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge has been a great success, but at the same time, you do not have to reinvent the wheel. We do not need to take the Adventure Challenge to the world, instead we can be part of something already, in this case the Ironman: An extreme sport that attracts participants who are engineers, doctors, scientists and so on."
The branding is certainly having an effect – as the genial gentleman standing in the Salou service park proved. "Usually I go to Canada or America," said Alfredo smiling proudly. "But next year I am taking my wife and children to Abu Dhabi. I just wish I could have gone next month to watch Barcelona."
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