Professional cycling in the Emirates is set for a major shake-up after it was announced that the Abu Dhabi Tour and Dubai Tour have been merged and will run as the UAE Tour from 2019.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the two governing bodies on Wednesday. The amalgamated event is set to retain its elite UCI World Tour status and consist of seven stages across the country, with next February planned as the running date.

“It is time to elevate the success we have had from both the Abu Dhabi and Dubai Tours to another level,” Abu Dhabi Sports Council general secretary Aref Al Awani was quoted as saying in The National.

“The nature of the UAE has always been to have a united passion. The instructions have come from our leadership that we should utilise the success that we have got as one nation.”

The Dubai Tour was founded in 2014, with the Abu Dhabi event following a year later. The race in the capital was added to the premier UCI World Tour in 2017.

Several of the sport’s biggest stars have competed in them, such as Mark Cavendish, Elia Viviani and Vincenzo Nibali.

Dubai Sports Council general secretary Saeed Hareb declared the amalgamated event will be more financially viable.

He said: “It’s not less or more on the financial resources for us but more impact in terms on the value of the event in terms of the media coverage.”