Desert Polo, which creates Saudi Arabian history as the first tournament held under the auspices of the newly formed Saudi Polo Federation, is to make debuted on January 16-18.

It formed a central showpiece of the Winter at Tantora festival, which celebrates the cultural heritage of the beautiful and historic Al Madina Al Munawara region over a three-month period.

Players from La Dolfina, fresh from their 11th victory in the Argentine Open, swapped the city of Buenos Aires for the towering sandstone mountains and sweeping canyons of AlUla, a site of civilisation dating back 200,000 years.

There they headed one team each leading invited players and patrons from the glamorous world of polo in a two-day tournament.