Dubai has been awarded the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens ahead of an impressive list of candidates that included Australia, Russia, Holland and US.
The tournament, which will be held in February 2009, will be sponsored by Emirates, who along with the Government of Dubai and the Arabian Gulf Rugby Football Union (AGRFU) was actively involved in Dubai's bid.
The first Sevens World Cup was played in Scotland in 1993 with tournaments following in Hong Kong in 1997, Argentina in 2001 and again Hong Kong in 2005.