ADMM and Flash Entertainment merge to grow the Middle East's hospitality sector

The Middle East is set to become a powerhouse in the landscape of entertainment, events and venue management. This is from Abu Dhabi Motorsports Management (ADMM) and Flash Entertainment recently joining both its forces and creating Ethara.

Employees from both organisations will operate out of new Ethara offices located in Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Dubai. Together they have ambitions of expertly navigating the live events industry where new opportunities and gaps in the market will be sought after.

Former CEO of ADMM and Flash Entertainment Board Member, Saif Al Noaimi will be CEO of Ethara and will be tasked with steering the company towards new markets and laying the foundations for greater commercial growth. Al Noaimi touched on the merger between struck between ADMM and Flash Entertainment, saying: "By combining our strengths, we are perfectly positioned to make memorable moments that matter."

Al Noaimi outlined what the new company would represent, mentioning "Ethara is a people-first event and entertainment powerhouse that promotes and delivers best-in-class experiences".

ADMM and Flash Entertainment have collaborated in a significant capacity before as the past decade has seen them work on delivering 700 prime events to over 16 million attendees collectively.

In addition to festivals and cultural celebrations, the majority of ADMM and Flash Entertainment's joint ventures have been in the sports realm, including the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, FIFA Club World Cup, AFC Asian Cup and NBA Abu Dhabi Games.

This comes amidst sports having reached higher levels of growth in the Middle East recently, with football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo joining Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr a few months ago in a move that has brought greater interest and intrigue to Middle Eastern sports and entertainment.

Both ADMM and Flash Entertainment have played a major role in pushing the Middle East among the world's most appropriate locations for entertainment events. Now the priority is to sustain what has been built in previous years with all the numerous events hosted in the region and take operations to the next level.

Al Noaimi spoke on what Ethara could achieve now that expertise will be coming from two experienced event-centred companies in the Middle Eastern region. He commented: "By integrating the activities and operations of two of Abu Dhabi's pioneering entertainment and event management titans, Ethara will further establish the Emirate as an economic engine in the entertainment, event management, and sports industries, locally, regionally, and internationally."

The Ethara CEO also mentioned how the company's goals would not be possible with just staff from one organisation running the ship. He stated: "We have an unrivalled wealth of expertise, experience, knowledge and skills, which will propel Ethara's success far beyond what either company could achieve alone – all powered by world-class creativity and innovation."

Whilst Ethara begins to plot strategies to revolutionise the Middle East's live entertainment, venue and events space, other assets will continue to be maintained to high standards so that the region sustains its newly found success in this market. These assets include the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 racetrack, Yas Marina Circuit, which has hosted a race in the Formula 1 calendar every year since 2009 and typically hosts the final race of the season.

The track was the scene of one of the most scrutinised sporting moments in recent years, the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The race saw Max Verstappen win in a heavily controversial fashion after he took advantage of the safety car's involvement and ultimately emerged as the World Champion for that season.

Other assets include the largest open-air venue in the Middle East, Etihad Park and the biggest multi-purpose state-of-the-art indoor venue, Etihad Arena. Also included is Yas Conference Centre, which overlooks Yas Island and has incredible event, conference and meeting areas that are multifaceted.

This merger is viewed as a window of hopeful growth in the events industry for Ethara and they will seek further opportunities and new partnerships. Al Noaimi echoed the optimism surrounding Ethara by stating: "Ethara provides an exceptional platform to realise our collective potential and create experiences of the future, today,"

Despite the new inevitable new relationships that will be created, the local and foreign partnerships formed by ADMM and Flash Entertainment previously from when both companies started up, will continue to be prioritised and improved upon by Ethara.