Boxing in UAE: Gloves off for Iker Casillas as he relaxes ringside in Dubai for boxing event

Dubai: Iker Casillas, the Spanish World Cup-winning goalkeeper and hero of Real Madrid, let the other guys in gloves do the hard work on Friday as he was a guest of honour at a boxing event in Dubai on Friday.

Casillas, who won the 2010 World Cup with Spain, as well as the 2008 and 2012 Euros, plus countless titles with Real, was sat ringside at the Conrad Hotel to watch the heavyweight exhibition fight between Thor Bjornsson took and Simon Vallily in Dubai.

The now-retired goalkeeping legend was accompanied by compatriot Michel Salgado’s and is in Dubai to open his own academy here as a centre for the development of goalkeepers in the UAE and the region.

“Great to be here,” he told Gulf News. “I’m relaxing and having a wonderful time in this great city.”