The UAE didn’t exist 40 years ago. It was hardly heard of 20 years ago.

Now, the country has some name recognition, and particularly the name “Dubai”. Almost all Europeans seem to be aware of it — to the point that when the Brits I work with go home on vacation they typically are asked “how are things in Dubai?” when they live and work in Abu Dhabi, which is about 75 miles away from Dubai. Different city. Different emirate. Not dissimilar from asking an Arizonan how things are going in Los Angeles.

How did Dubai first get on the map?

The first and perhaps most lasting reference to Dubai that seemed to stick was the Dubai World Cup horse race, which began in 1996 has been offering the biggest purse in the sport for a while now.

The World Cup race was run Saturday night, and won by Victoire Pisa, a horse from Japan.

If you follow horses at all, you have to know about Dubai. The World Cup race is worth $10 million, with $6 million to the winner. I remember when the Arlington Million was a big deal. That’s now chump change, up in Dubai.

Our sports columnist here at The National, Chuck Culpepper, remembers when he first bumped into the name “Dubai” … and it actually preceded the Dubai W0rld Cup.

His story goes back to 1992 and a colt named Azari, which was jointly owned by the man who is now the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.

Read about it here.

Chuck remembers wondering where this Dubai place was, after the sheikh bought into Azari. And the conversation in the press box at various race tracks … checking the spelling, and all.

I have trouble pegging my own knowledge of Dubai, in particular. I was aware of this entity UAE … and I knew this part of the Gulf was floating on oil. The UAE had a peripheral involvement with the 1991 Gulf War, and I would have heard about it then. And by 1993 I was well aware of Qatar, because I covered the 1994 World Cup Asian qualifying tournament there, an event which left a deep impression on me.

Less aware of the UAE, however.

Anyway, sometimes a sports event can give a place which indulges in sports on the side some very quick name recognition. How many U.S. basketball fans knew about Butler University, 15 months ago?

Dubai and horses … a connection that helped turn it into a global brand.