In Zayed Sports City Stadium, the Open Masters Games Abu Dhabi 2026 opened with a welcome ceremony that blended spectacle with local heritage: a sweeping light show, cultural storytelling features, and a closing concert that turned the stadium into a singalong.
The Games, running 6–15 February 2026, have drawn over 25,000 athletes from all over the world, making this first Middle East edition a major milestone for the global Masters movement.
A city built for sport—and for everyone
In the official welcome address, the Minister of Sports UAE H.E. Ahmed Belhoul Al Falasi framed the night as a celebration of participation and possibility, saluting athletes who balance careers, families and training: “Tonight, Abu Dhabi doesn’t just host a Games, we host a promise: that sport belongs to everyone, at every age,” the Minister said. “Your presence here proves that ambition doesn’t retire. It evolves.”
The Minister also pointed to the ceremony’s creative direction, using performance, projection and music to tell a distinctly Emirati story, while welcoming visitors to venues across the emirate during the week of competition.
President Sergii Bubka: “What matters most… is the people”
Sergii Bubka, President of the International Masters Games Association (IMGA), delivered the evening’s defining message: that Masters sport is less about medals and more about community, wellbeing, and lifelong movement and inspiration.
“What matters most in the Masters Games is not results or records, but the people” Bubka said, praising the athletes’ “stories of perseverance, balance and belief” and calling the Abu Dhabi edition “special” for bringing the movement to the Middle East. He emphasised:
“What brings over 21’000 athletes together is something very powerful. A belief that sport enriches our lives. That it gives us joy, health, and meaning, at every stage of life.”
He sincerely thanked the Leadership of the UAE, the Organising Committee, the volunteers, partners, and local authorities for their commitment and hard work creating an outstanding experience.
Light, rhythm, and cultural storytelling on a grand scale
From the first moments, the ceremony leaned into contrast, traditional motifs rendered through contemporary stagecraft. A precisely choreographed light show washed the stadium in shifting color and pattern, while scene-by-scene storytelling traced themes of journey, hospitality, and resilience, an artistic bridge between Abu Dhabi’s heritage and its global present.
Rita Ora and Leona Lewis close the night with “Rise Up”
The ceremony culminated with headline performances by Rita Ora and Leona Lewis, bringing pop energy to a crowd already buoyed by the parade of athletes and the stadium spectacle.
In a final moment designed for unity over star power, the music shifted to a shared anthem: the show closed with “Rise Up,” sending athletes and spectators into the week of competition on a note of collective lift and optimism.
