AS Arabia presented in Madrid
Another major step was taken today in the evolution of AS Arabia, (the Arabic language sports platform) through which Madrid-based Diario AS aims to reach millions of Arabic language readers. The AS head office in the Spanish capital was the setting for the official presentation for the initiative which plans to target an audience in 25 countries spread across the Middle East and North Africa. The event was attended by Manuel Mirat, Chief Executive Officer of AS; Alfredo Relaño, Director of AS; Sheikh Khalid bin Thani bin Abdullah Al Thani, Vice-president of the Qatar-based media outlet Dar Al Sharq Group, one of the leading news groups in the Arabian Gulf; Abdullatif Al Mahmoud, Executive Director of the Dar Al Sharq Group; Muhammad Alkordy, Executive Manager of the Al Sharq E-Management Company along with various leading names from the world of sport.
"Today is an historic day, with the signing of this agreement with Dar Al Sharq. We're taking another step in the international development of the AS brand, with what will be a successful project", said Manuel Mirat. "This alliance is a boost for the coverage of news in the Arab region, with high quality reporting. This new platform will be useful both for Arabs who live in our area and for Arabs living in every corner of the world," said Abdullatif Al Mahmoud. Meanwhile Alfredo Relaño said: "this is a new window for our sport to be known in the Arab world, and to go from there to the rest of the world".
The initial agreement for the new venture between AS and the Dar al Sharq group, which also includes the collaboration of the Del Canto Chambers law firm, was originally signed in Doha, Qatar on August 3rd. With the launch of AS Arabia, Diario AS, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, will become the leading sports outlet in the Arabic language world. The newsroom will be located in Cairo, Egypt and the forthcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will command much of the focus as the project evolves.
December 2017 is the scheduled launch date for AS Arabia: news, interviews, live-game coverage and interviews will all form part of the content that will enable Diario AS to ensure their output reaches the widest audience possible with 25 Middle East and North African countries soon to be able to enjoy the best in sports coverage: Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Bahrein, Comoros, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Palestine and Yemen.
With the launch of AS Arabia, the AS Group increases its global reach in an on-going effort to deliver the best sports news to the widest possible audience. AS Arabia joins the already existing digital versions in other territories such as Chile, Colombia, Mexico, United States, Argentina, Peru, South Africa, Singapore and Malaysia. AS also boasts an English language version, AS English and a version catering for the American market, AS América.