First-ever UAE Wild Card Championship gets under way in Dubai

The round of 16 and the quarter-finals of the UAE Residents Open, part of the UAE Wild Card Championship, which kicked off on Friday, are taking place today at Padel Arena, Sharjah, with over 190 advanced padel players from the UAE and GCC competing for one of six Wild Card entries to the World Padel Tour.

Sponsored by Emirates Post Group in partnership with UAE Padel Association and Abu Dhabi Sports Council, the UAE Wild Card Championship comprises six tournaments that will take place across the UAE over three weekends in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah from 27th January to 12th February.

The championship includes three category tournaments: UAE Residents Open, UAE Nationals, and GCC Nationals, with each category hosting male and female tournaments. More than 90 teams have registered to date for the six playoff matches, including over 50 men's teams and 35 women’s teams.

This weekend's play-off, which is for UAE residents, included a round of 32 that took place yesterday, while the round of 16 and the quarter-finals are being held today, and the semi-finals to be held on Sunday, 29th January.

The second tournament of the championship, which is organised for UAE nationals, will follow the same knockout format from 3rd - 5th February at the World Padel Academy in Dubai. Advanced padel players from other GCC nations will compete in the championship's third tournament from 10th - 11th February at the Abu Dhabi Padel Hub of the Zayed Cricket Stadium.

Meanwhile, the finals for each of the six tournaments are scheduled to take place 12th February at the Abu Dhabi Padel Hub, with each winning team receiving a Wild Card, qualifying them to play against the world’s top-seeded padel players in the Qualification round of the Modon Abu Dhabi Padel Master, taking place from 18th – 20th February at 321 Sports on Hudayriyat Island. This will be followed by the Main Draw of the Modon Abu Dhabi Padel Master from 21st – 26th February at Bab Al Nojoum on Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi. Each of the six finalists will also be awarded AED 10,000 in prize money.

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