Clifford Chance lands Disney mandate on first Middle East theme park

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Published:

May 16, 2025 11:50 AM

Credit: Miral

Need to know

Clifford Chance is advising Disney on its partnership to develop a new theme park in Abu Dhabi - the company’s first in the Middle East.

The project will be fully funded and operated by Miral, with Disney licensing its IP.

Clifford Chance is advising The Walt Disney Company on its agreement with UAE developer Miral to develop a flagship Disney theme park resort on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi - the entertainment giant’s first-ever park in the Middle East, and its first major resort announcement since Shanghai in 2010.

The project will be Disney’s seventh global theme park resort and the company’s first primarily indoor park - designed to suit the region’s climate and sit alongside existing Miral-operated attractions on Yas Island, including Warner Bros. World and SeaWorld.

Under the terms of the deal, Miral will finance, build and operate the resort. Disney will license its IP, provide creation direction, operational oversight and earn royalties from the project, but it is not funding it.

On an earnings call last week, Disney CEO Bob Iger said: "It is all their capital and we will get a royalty. So there isn't ownership. We own our IP and license it to them is essentially the arrangement. We're responsible for design and development."

The park is expected to open in the early 2030s.

CC team

Clifford Chance is advising Disney on all aspects of the partnership, with a multidisciplinary team led by UAE-based partners Tariq Imam (real estate & hospitality) and Lynn Ammar (corporate).

The matter draws on the firm’s IP, corporate, construction, disputes and antitrust teams across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and London, with core team members including IP specialists Stephen Reese and Briony Byrne (both London), Inaamul Laher and Matthew Judkins (construction, UAE), Johnson Cortelek (real estate, UAE), and Gareth Dray and Sima Al Baterni (corporate, UAE)

What they said

Lead partner Imam said:

"It is an enormous honour and privilege for Clifford Chance to represent Disney on such a landmark and historic transaction. Disney theme park resorts are unique, once-in-a-generation projects, so we are grateful to the talented and dedicated team at Disney for placing their trust in our firm."