Globe Soccer has announced plans to expand its annual awards event to five new ceremonies across four continents in 2024, with a final ceremony comprising the continental winners to take place in Dubai. Billed as the ‘Road to Dubai’, the new Globe Soccer Intercontinental Series will feature five standalone award editions covering Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East next year, with specific details of each event to be revealed in the coming months. The winners of each of the continental main awards will then automatically qualify as finalists for the annual Dubai Globe Soccer Awards, in partnership with Dubai Sports Council. “For 13 years, the Dubai Globe Soccer Awards has helped bring the football world to the emirate,” said Tommaso Bendoni, founder and CEO of Globe Soccer. “In recent years, we have seen huge growth in terms of the number of awards, and also the number of fan votes and media coverage. We believe now is the time for us to take the show – and Dubai – to the world. “The Intercontinental Series will provide greater opportunities for those operating in global football, as well as allowing us to engage with even more fans. The year-long ‘Road to Dubai’ programme has been designed to ensure the ultimate focus remains on the emirate, while also enabling us to recognise clubs, players, coaches and managers, agents, directors, scouts, and other stakeholders from every corner of the world.” Since the inaugural event in 2010, the Dubai Globe Soccer Awards has increased from three awards to 21, with recent additions including the Emerging Player of the Year and Best Youth Team. Last year, more than 33 million fan votes decided the shortlisted nominees, before a judging panel <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/sport/2022/11/18/karim-benzema-and-alexia-putellas-named-players-of-the-year-at-dubai-globe-soccer-awards/" target="_blank">crowned Karim Benzema and Alexia Putellas as the Best Men’s and Women’s Player of the Year</a>, respectively. “We are proud of our partnership with the Dubai Globe Soccer Awards," Saeed Hareb, secretary general of Dubai Sports Council, said. "This partnership commenced with the inauguration of the event as a significant occasion rooted in Dubai, but with global reach. "Today, it has become one of the most prestigious events in world football, serving as a gathering for football stars and decision-makers. "The new 'Road to Dubai’ awards format enables us to acknowledge and honour a greater number of stars from various continents, thus highlighting their achievements. Moreover, it offers the winners a chance to take part in the main ceremony in Dubai. This development aligns with the award's growth, evolution, international reputation, and influence in global football.” Ferran Soriano, CEO of treble winners Manchester City and the City Football Group, sits on the event’s judging panel. He believes having the winners of the five new events automatically shortlisted for the Dubai Globe Soccer Awards will provide recognition of talents in regions often neglected by such awards and organisations. “The Globe Soccer Intercontinental Series will recognise all manner of professionals working in the game, including those operating in underrepresented regions,” Soriano said. “As CEO of City Football Group, which operates in a range of international markets from Uruguay to China, I have seen first-hand the wealth of talent working in football around the world. "In acknowledging the work of these people and providing them the chance to travel to Dubai and network within the industry, Globe Soccer can directly and significantly benefit the careers of these people and, indirectly, further globalisation of the game."
