From Abu Dhabi's Streets to the UAE's Screens
Powering Abu Dhabi's Landmark Marathon Online
The ADNOC Abu Dhabi Marathon is the UAE’s flagship mass participation running event, bringing together elite international athletes, committed runners, first-time participants and the wider Abu Dhabi community. Combining world-class competition with mass participation, the event has become a major fixture on Abu Dhabi’s sporting calendar and an important platform for showcasing the city as a global destination for sport.
From 2022–2024, F31 was appointed to lead the event’s social media strategy and delivery, with a clear challenge: build a digital presence that matched the scale and ambition of the event while speaking authentically to very different audiences. Content needed to inspire registrations, support participants throughout their journey, showcase elite sport and capture the energy of race weekend.
Drawing on our deep understanding of mass participation sport, F31 built a content strategy around the complete runner journey - from the first decision to enter, through months of preparation, to the finish line.
We combined motivational and educational content with community storytelling, elite athlete narratives and destination-led creative, supported by live coverage of community runs throughout the build-up. As event week arrived, our team moved into an intensive 10-day live production operation, covering the Event Village and race build-up through to race day itself - capturing elite competition, participant stories, partner activations and finish-line emotion in real time.
Alongside content delivery, 24/7 community management provided participants with fast, informed support - creating a digital experience that reflected the scale and quality of the event itself.
The result: Year-on-year growth in digital engagement and participation, supporting record-breaking event growth and establishing a digital presence worthy of one of the region’s leading mass participation events.
