Gareth Barnett-Jones, Saeed Mohammed Hareb, Mohammed Khalaf Al Habtoor and Santiago Torreguitar at the press conference for Gold Cup 2022.

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

The schedule of Gold Cup 2022 (Dubai Open) was released and a draw for the tournament took place at the Al Habtoor Polo Resort hotel in Dubai on Tuesday.

The prestigious Dubai Open will be held under the patronage of Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance, from Feb.14 until March 5.

The tournament will have eight teams vying for the coveted cup of the Dubai Polo Gold Cup (DPGC) Series.

The Gold Cup is one of the five tournaments of the DPGC Series and is now on its 13th year.

The tournament is recognized and certified by the World Polo Tour (WPT) and played under the WPT Championship Cup, which is considered as one of the highest competition in terms of points. It awards 125 points to its winners, 65 points to the finalists, 45 points to the semi-finalists and 30 points to all other participating players.

It is the only tournament in the UAE that is played in this category, on a par with tournaments held in Argentina, Spain, UK and US.

The tournaments under the DPGC Series follows Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA) rules and plays under the provision of its umpires.

This year, the Dubai Open has received support from numerous sponsors – Auto Millennium Group, Gulf Business Machines, PROW, and Plutas Trading.

Mohammed K Al Habtoor, Vice Chairman and CEO of Al Habtoor Group, Founder of the DPGC Series and Patron of Habtoor Polo team were joined by Saeed Mohammed Hareb, Secretary General of the Dubai Sports Council, Gareth Bernett-Jones, Managing Director of Auto Millennium Group and Santiago Torreguitar, Tournament Director of the UAE Polo Federation.

Mohammed Al Habtoor said, “We are proud to host another year of the Dubai Open. The tournament has grown from a 10-12 goal handicap tournament in 2009 to an internationally recognized and widely anticipated 18 goal tournament in the Middle East since 2015.

“The milestones that we have achieved over the years were made possible through the confidence of our sponsors, polo patrons, and athletes.

“The last two years were challenging for us as it was for the rest of the world, and yet we continue to tread boldly in to our 13th year, continuously hosting a world-class polo event that will serve as an impetus to developing a new generation of polo athletes in the country.”