Dubai: Fifa President Sepp Blatter arrived in Dubai on Sunday to participate in the SportAccord International Convention 2010 Dubai.
Blatter was received at the airport by Yousuf Al Sarkal, Vice-President, UAE National Olympic Committee, Saeed Abdul Gaffar, Vice-Chairman of the UAE Football Association (UAEFA), and Dr. Khalid Al Zahid, Deputy Executive Director and General Coordinator of the Dubai Organising Committee of SportAccord 2010, along with other officials from the UAEFA.
Blatter spent a few minutes at the VIP lounge of the Dubai International Airport, before heading to The Atlantis hotel, where the convention is taking place.
Blatter was scheduled to engage in various discussions and meetings at the SportAccord Convention over the next few days.
Qatar backing
His visit comes just a day after the influential president backed Qatar to host the World Cup.
He praised the country's rapid rise as a major sporting destination and said the Arab world "deserved the World Cup".
"Qatar has a good chance to become the first country from the region to host it," Blatter told a news conference.
Blatter said he was impressed by the new development in Qatar, one of the countries bidding to host the 2022 World Cup.
"I'm a regular visitor to Qatar, and every time I land here, I am impressed by all the development," he said.
