Dubai Duty Free, the world-renowned airport retail operator, has entered a new era in its commitment to the European Tour and the development of worldwide golf, becoming an Official Partner to the Tour in a four-year agreement.

The Official Partnership follows the announcement in May that Dubai Duty Free has extended its title sponsorship of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open in a similar deal, which is expected to take the naming rights of the event through to 2022.

Dubai Duty Free joins Rolex, BMW, Emirates, Hilton and Titleist on the exclusive list of Official Partners to the European Tour, gaining global exposure at select European Tour events, and across the European Tour’s platforms, including its award-winning social media channels.

Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice-Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free, said: “We are pleased to join a stellar list of companies to become an official partner of European Tour. We have identified marketing opportunities for our brand across several tournaments as well as digital elements that will enable us to engage with our global customers. We are very excited about this partnership going forward and believe it will enhance our existing sponsorship portfolio.”

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive Officer of the European Tour, said: “Dubai Duty Free have been invaluable partners to the European Tour through their title sponsorship of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open.

“This agreement marks an important evolution of our partnership and we are thrilled to welcome Dubai Duty Free to the European Tour Official Partner family. We look forward to working closely with them in future to build their brand awareness and achieve their goal of supporting sport globally.”

In 2017, the European Tour heralded a new era for the game as eight prestigious events were elevated to Rolex Series status, each event carrying a minimum US$7 million prize fund and benefiting from significant enhancements across the board – from fan experience to digital content.

The Dubai Duty Free Irish Open was one of those tournaments, marking another milestone in the event’s extensive growth since Dubai Duty Free came on board in 2015, along with Rory McIlroy and his charitable foundation as tournament hosts.

Their title sponsorship of the island of Ireland’s national Open was the culmination of a long and fruitful relationship with the European Tour which began back in 1989, when the United Arab Emirates city was first put on the golfing map with the introduction of the Dubai Desert Classic.

That relationship continued to bloom over the next four decades as Dubai became an increasingly integral destination to the tour’s significant growth. Dubai Duty Free’s backing extended to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship upon the tournament’s introduction – along with the Race to Dubai – in 2009, before taking the big step in 2015 to assume title-sponsorship of one of golf’s most historic national Opens.

Dubai Duty Free’s Official Partnership with the European Tour continues the company’s wide-ranging and substantial support of global sport which includes the famous Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the prestigious Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby.