Golf: European Tour to be rebranded as DP World Tour

The name change marks the end of an era for the European Tour, which was founded in 1972.

REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE: European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley said the deal with DP World will nearly double the total prize money on the tour, to more than $200 million from 2022.

The European Tour will be renamed the DP World Tour from next year following a partnership with the United Arab Emirates-based logistics company, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

The deal will nearly double the total prize money on the tour to more than $200 million from 2022, with a minimum prize fund of $2 million for each tournament.

The tour will feature a minimum 47 events in 27 countries.

"The launch of the DP World Tour in 2022, coinciding with both of our 50th anniversaries, will herald a new era in global golf, and crucially it will benefit everybody involved," said Keith Pelley, chief executive of the European Tour.

"The entire ecosystem of our Tour will be strengthened because of this hugely significant deal, and that was essential to us and to DP World, who have been an incredible supporter of our Tour as well as golf more widely."

DP World has sponsored the season-ending event on the European Tour in Dubai since 2009.

The announcement comes after the Asian Tour last month said it would add 10 new tournaments after a partnership with LIV Golf Investments, a company backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).