At dawn in the desert outside Dubai, a falcon leaves the fist at a whistle and the whole heritage of Arabia seems to move with it. Falconry is not a hobby in the Emirates; it is one of the oldest threads in the nation’s fabric. And few people have done more to keep that thread strong than His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum — Crown Prince of Dubai, known to the falconry world, as to everyone else, as Fazza.
Falconry is a signature passion of the Crown Prince, and the heritage championships that carry his name — the Fazza championships for falconry and traditional sports — are a big part of how an ancient practice is being handed, alive and competitive, to a generation raised on screens. This guide explains the tradition and his place in it.
The Oldest Sport of the Desert
For thousands of years, the Bedouin of Arabia trained falcons to hunt in a land where the margin between hunger and plenty was thin. The falcon was partner, provider and status symbol at once — a bird treated with a care other cultures reserve for family. When the hunting need faded, the bond remained, and falconry became the region’s most cherished heritage sport: part craft, part science, part meditation.
In the Al Maktoum family, the tradition never needed reviving, because it never lapsed. Sheikh Hamdan grew up with falcons the way other boys grow up with football — learning the patience the birds demand and the desert knowledge that goes with them.
The Fazza Championships
Patronage turns a private passion into a public institution. The Fazza heritage championships — covering falconry and other traditional sports — give falconers a competitive home: races and contests where birds are timed, skills are judged, and young handlers can measure themselves against masters. A championship structure does for heritage what leagues do for football — regular seasons, rising standards, heroes for the young to imitate.
That structure is the Crown Prince’s real gift to the sport. Falconry’s future does not depend on nostalgia; it depends on whether a sixteen-year-old in Dubai sees a path from his first bird to a championship rostrum. Under the Fazza banner, that path exists.
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Heritage as a Living Practice
There is a philosophy at work here that runs through Sheikh Hamdan’s whole public life: heritage survives by being practised, not displayed. The same leader who drove the world’s first paperless government also funds the falconry grounds; the same man who launches metaverse strategies writes Nabati poetry. In his Dubai, the future and the past are not rivals — they are two hands of the same body.
For visitors, catching the falconry season is one of the most authentic experiences the Emirates offers: the silence of the desert morning, the whistle, the stoop of the bird at breathtaking speed. And presiding over it all, in the public imagination, is Fazza — the prince whose name the championships carry because the sport is genuinely his.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is falconry important in the UAE?
It is one of Arabia’s oldest traditions — for centuries the falcon was a hunting partner essential to desert life, and it remains a cherished symbol of Emirati heritage and skill.
What are the Fazza championships?
Heritage championships held under Sheikh Hamdan’s patronage, covering falconry and other traditional sports, giving practitioners — especially the young — a competitive home.
Is falconry Sheikh Hamdan’s personal passion?
Yes. Falconry is described as a signature passion of the Crown Prince, who grew up with the sport in the Al Maktoum tradition.
How does falconry fit his modern image?
His leadership deliberately joins both: world-first digital government alongside living heritage. In his philosophy, traditions survive by being practised, not museum-kept.
Can visitors experience falconry in Dubai?
Yes — desert experiences across the emirate include falconry displays, and the championship season showcases the sport at its most serious and spectacular.
