Dubai: Portuguese football legend Luís Figo is coming to Dubai this weekend. And it has nothing to do with football! He’s here to do yoga.
Figo will be joining 2,500 yogis at Kite Beach on February 1, to kick off the third edition of XYoga Dubai Festival.
Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Luís Figo has formerly played for Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan.
After retiring from professional football, the former Barcelona captain has apparently taken up yoga as a mode of relaxation. He has posted about it previously on his Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Mohammed Javad, General Manager of XDubai, the organisers of XYoga Dubai said: “Luis Figo is both an inspiration and a legend. During his time on the pitch and following his retirement, he has inspired millions to follow a healthy and meaningful lifestyle and we are thrilled to have him join the opening session of this year’s XYoga Dubai Festival, presented by Dubai Holding. Since the very first XYoga Dubai event in 2016, we have inspired tens of thousands of people to join us in defying their limits and we hope that Luis’ presence at this year’s event will spur a new generation of yogis to embrace wellness and yoga and make Dubai the fittest city in the world.”
Figo’s reputation for his collaborative play and leadership skills on the pitch, won him the Ballon d’Or in 2000, the Fifa World Player of the Year in 2001, and in 2004, Pelé named him in the Fifa 100 list of the world’s greatest living players.
He will join Indian yogi Deepika Mehta and actress Nargis Fakhri to lead the 2,500-strong community in the first session of the two-day event this Friday.
The 7.30am session will launch the two-day festival – the region’s largest – which will see more than 15,000 yogis of all ages and abilities converge at the festival village in Jumeirah, ending February 2, for the 63 complimentary classes, running from sunrise to sundown.