Pope Francis’ visit to Abu Dhabi draws people from near and far

29 January 2019

A week before Pope Francis’ visit to Abu Dhabi, there’s a great anticipation among Catholics here as preparations get underway.

The pontiff’s visit to the UAE capital, a landmark for inter-faith relations between Muslims and Christians, is set to draw thousands from both near and far.

Tickets are given for free. But due to slots “limited” to 120,000, seats for the open-air mass which the Pope will celebrate at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi, are now being raffled off at different parishes across the Gulf region.

The Pope’s visit marks the first by a head of the Catholic Church to the UAE.

Some 120,000 Catholics will be given the opportunity to attend the Holy High Mass by the Pope Francis while others will get a chance to watch it live-streamed in all Catholic Churches.

Ticket eligibility

As a papal motorcade is unlikely, tickets for the pontiff’s sole public appearance at Zayed Sports City is in extremely high demand. Capacity of the Zayed Sports City stadium is said to be around 130,000 and it is expected to be filled up by Christians from the UAE and the region.

Tickets are required to enter the stadium and there is a strict procedure in place with regards to its distribution. People have to apply online or get their tickets through parishes in the UAE.

There are around a million members of the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia, which includes the Catholic Church in the UAE, Oman and Yemen.

In Oman there are four parishes and in the UAE there are eight parishes. Tickets for people living in non-GCC countries are being allocated on a first come first served basis.

Applications from the rest of the world outside the Middle East are no longer being accepted as these allocated places are already full, according a website dedicated to the papal visit.