Dubai: Emirates, the world’s largest airline and Etoile Sportive du Sahel, one of the most decorated football and basketball sports clubs in Tunisia, have signed a new sponsorship deal, which will see Emirates become the official airline sponsor of the Club, starting from the 2023-24 season.The agreement underscores Emirates’ ongoing commitment to growing the sport of football and connecting to a new base of fans in North Africa. In addition to football, Emirates will also be supporting the main indoor sporting teams which includes basketball, volleyball and handball. Emirates branding will be prominently placed on the Etoile Sportive du Sahel Club’s first team jerseys, training kits, as well as all indoor sports kits from the start of the 2023-2024 season.Emirates will also enjoy a wide-range of other benefits including: advertising and branding rights in the club’s stadium and indoor sports facilities, digital and social media activation rights, hospitality, meet and greet access to the athletes; and prominent visibility across the Sousse Olympic Stadium and training ground and indoor sports arena.Speaking on the partnership, Mr. Badr Abbas, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Africa, Emirates, said, “We are pleased to partner with Etoile Sportive du Sahel, a football powerhouse in Africa, and a formidable force in international basketball. Amplifying our brand message on jerseys across their different sports divisions will help to create more meaningful connections with sports fan bases in Tunis and across Africa. Our partnership with Etoile du Sahel is also a testament of our support and long-standing involvement with football and we’re also keen to connect with fans of indoor sports including basketball, volleyball and handball that are fast gaining popularity in Tunisia. Etoile du Sahel has great local and regional appeal, and as a brand, we’re proud to bring together ardent fans and teams, expand the reach of the club, while nurturing upcoming talent.”Mr. M Othman JENAYAH, Etoile du Sahel said, “As the president of Etoile Sportive du Sahel, I am happy to announce this great partnership with Emirates. This collaboration signifies our shared passion for the beautiful game and our mutual dedication to fostering the growth of football in Tunisia and beyond.We are proud to have the world’s largest airline, Emirates as the official sponsor of Etoile Sportive du Sahel. This partnership marks a momentous milestone in our club's history, as we proudly display the renowned Emirates brand on our jerseys. We are excited to join forces with a global company that shares our commitment to excellence, both on and off the field.Emirates' support and recognition of Etoile Sportive du Sahel is a testament to our club's remarkable legacy and this partnership not only strengthens our position as a prominent force in African football but also amplifies our visibility on an international scale.”Etoile du Sahel is one of the most glorious and multisport Tunisian club, known primarily by its football, basketball, handball and volleyball teams. L’Etoile stands for its worldwide performances and has won several championships, cups and super cups at the national, African and Arab level.Having won more CAF trophies than any other Tunisian team, the club has been crowned the top title of CAF Champions League, has earned 2 CAF Super Cup titles, 4 CAF Confederation Cup titles and 2 African Winners' Cup.It has been listed as one of the most valuable football clubs in Africa and one of the most widely supported teams in the continent.Emirates’ sponsorship portfolio is made of top sporting clubs, tournaments and high profile cultural events worldwide, and it remains committed to supporting sports, entertainment, music, culture and arts initiatives in the communities it serves. The airline supports an impressive roster of high profile football clubs and events including Arsenal FC, Olympique Lyonnais, Real Madrid FC, AC Milan, Olympiacos FC, S.L Benfica, The Emirates FA Cup, and the Asian Football Confederation.Emirates’ involvement in basketball began more than 32 years ago, when it partnered with the UAE Basketball Association as Sponsor and Official Airline, benefitting from multifaceted branding and marketing rights across its events. The airline has also sponsored the Dubai International Basketball Championship for 28 years, in addition to helping bring the FIBA World Championship to the UAE. Basketball teams sponsored by Emirates, both men’s and women’s divisions, have won the International Basketball Championship multiple times. Emirates has sponsored the Lebanese Basketball League and top division teams through its support of the Beirut Basketb

Nokia today announced that it has been selected by Ooredoo Group to upgrade its existing radio access networks (RAN), as well as deploy new sites in Algeria and Tunisia. This will improve the network performance and help Ooredoo Group to prepare for a launch of 5G services in the future. In addition, Nokia will modernize Ooredoo’s IP network, and modernize and extend its Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) network in Tunisia. These initiatives will transform Ooredoo Group’s networks by enhancing the mobile user experience thanks to better data speeds and capacity. Nokia will deploy its latest, energy-efficient AirScale portfolio including base stations supporting multiple generations of radio technology from 2G, 3G and 4G to 5G; massive MIMO Adaptive Antennas for urban and wide-area coverage; dual-band Remote Radio Heads (RRH); as well as AirScale indoor Radio (ASiR) small cell solution for seamless indoor coverage. These solutions will deliver an enhanced mobile user experience with high bandwidth, ultra-fast speeds and low latency.Under the deal, Nokia will replace the existing radio network for Ooredoo Tunisia, as well as expand the network with the addition of new radio sites. Nokia will increase its share in Ooredoo Algeria’s network to almost 50 percent, and in Ooredoo Tunisia’s network to around 40 percent.Nokia will also provide its AirFrame and CloudBand Application Manager (CBAM) solution for the network upgrade and deployment in Algeria and Tunisia. In addition, in Tunisia, Nokia will deploy its 7750 Service Router for the modernization of Ooredoo’s IP network and its GPON fiber broadband solution to upgrade the existing FTTH network, increasing its share in these domains to 100 percent in Ooredoo Tunisia’s network. Ahmad Al Neama, Group Regional CEO at Ooredoo Group, said: “Nokia has been our technology partner for many years and has been a part of our network evolution. Under this renewed partnership, we are taking our network to a new level of transformation to further improve our network performance and service experience for our customers. This will further empower our customers in Algeria and Tunisia for knowledge, business, entertainment and make competitive for a whole new lifestyle in the digital age.”Amr K. El Leithy, SVP, Middle East and Africa Market, Nokia, said: “Our vision is to create technology that helps the world act together. To realize this vision, we deliver secure, reliable and sustainable networks today – and work with valued operators such as Ooredoo Group to create the digital services and applications of the future. We are proud to be part of these large-scale network modernization and expansion projects with Ooredoo in Algeria and in Tunisia to unleash rich digital experiences and new value creation opportunities.”