DUBAI: Baseball United, the first professional baseball league focused on the Middle East and Indian subcontinent, has announced the expansion of its two UAE-based franchises.
The Dubai Wolves will now be called the Arabia Wolves, and the Abu Dhabi Falcons have been renamed the Mid East Falcons.
The two clubs will largely retain their original colors, emblems, and brand identities. The shifts in naming and branding are intended to extend the franchises’ appeal across the entire GCC.
“Over the past two years of building within the region, we continue to be inspired by the growing number of avid and emerging baseball fans across the GCC,” said Kash Shaikh, chairman, CEO, and co-founder of Baseball United.
“About 7 percent of the GCC population are now baseball fans, which gives us a strong foundation of nearly 5 million fans across the Arabian Peninsula. These fans are young, educated, and active across sports and social media. And they all want teams they can call their own — franchises that have a local feel, presence and identity. By evolving our founding Middle East franchises to encompass the entire region, we will now be able to connect with fans more meaningfully in all six GCC countries.”
The Arabia Wolves’ new typography includes Arabic-inspired lettering and elements, with a new letter mark featuring a stylized “A” protecting a four-point, i’jam-inspired compass that speaks to the connectivity across the Arabian Peninsula. I’jam are dots used in modern Arabic script to distinguish between consonants with identical shapes.
The Mid East Falcons’ new letter mark evolves the original Abu Dhabi lettering into an “ME” design that leverages a Tuscan serif font reminiscent of traditional Major League Baseball clubs. The regional distinction was shortened from Middle East to “Mid East” to evoke a younger, more modern feel.
“We are intentional and deliberate with our brand building and our marketing cadence,” said Shaikh. “We believe our brand strategy, brand identity, and brand creative are all key points of difference for our business, and we continue to see our league and franchise brands resonate with sports fans around the world. I can’t wait to see Arabia Wolves and Mid East Falcons hats and jerseys all over the Peninsula.”
The Arabia Wolves and Mid East Falcons join the Mumbai Cobras and Karachi Monarchs as Baseball United’s founding franchises. The league recently announced it would add three new franchises in Saudi Arabia later this year. Baseball United plans to have a total of eight franchises for its first full season, which is slated to begin in the winter of 2025.
Baseball United’s inaugural All-Star Showcase last November was the first professional baseball games in the history of the Middle East and South Asia. Hosted at Dubai International Stadium, the games were broadcast in 127 countries and reached nearly 200 million households. The two-game series included players from 16 countries who have played at the highest levels of professional baseball, including former Major League Baseball stars Robinson Cano, Pablo Sandoval, Bartolo Colon and Andrelton Simmons.
Cano, an eight-time MLB All-Star, joins several other MLB stars on the Arabia Wolves franchise, including former New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius, and former Atlanta Braves All-Star Jair Jurrjens. Sandoval, a two-time MLB All-Star and former World Series MVP, anchors the Mid East Falcons’ roster alongside former big leaguers Alex Liddi and Dillon Thomas.
