'Happy to be home': Former Manchester United player Rio Ferdinand on being back in Dubai

On a breezy April morning — 7.30 am, to be precise — Jumeirah Beach Hotel is buzzing with activity. Hordes of fitness enthusiasts, dressed in the most stylish athleisure, make their way to the sprawling lawns of Janat Al Bahar. They are here as much to work out as they are here to see Rio and Kate Ferdinand. The former Manchester United defender and his wife, a famous TV personality and host, have close to 100 people moving constantly with squats, press-ups, jumping lunges and other exercises. Even though they are here for community workout, for movement, their gaze remains fixed at the duo leading them on stage. And no prizes for guessing why.

Rio and Kate Ferdinand are back in Dubai for good. And it is reassuring to watch them in action at the landmark that is the Jumeirah Beach Hotel with the views of Burj Al Arab right in the background.

Finding their way home

A lot was speculated by the international press when Rio and Kate had left the city first for Portugal and later for the Maldives. Today, the couple is ready to set the record straight. “To be honest, we always plan to go away on a spring break. So, Maldives had been good because we have Rio’s football camp for kids, Football Escapes, there and lots of children come there. We all feel very safe in Dubai. But it was actually good for the system to be away for a while and have a little holiday. We are happy to be home,” she says. Rio Ferdinand agrees. “Whenever I do talk to people, I always say I am going home. Dubai is home.”

It doesn’t end with returning home. The couple is also invested in encouraging the community to feel at ease during uncertain times. One of the ways they’ve decided to “give back” is through Kate’s venture, One Body Co, a wellness platform spotlighting importance of movement in holistic healing.

We are attending first of many such planned community workouts through which Rio and Kate Ferdinand want to bring people together. “Five days ago,” says Rio Ferdinand, “That’s when she planned this event. She woke up one day and said we need to do something. The thing is, we both work out. Everybody wants to get moving. Everybody’s homeschooling, which is hard work for families. People are also working from home. Our idea was, why not get these people out of their homes?”

Kate understands that this has been a rather challenging time. “What is good to acknowledge is that everyone feels different,” she says. “There is not one way to feel, and it’s alright to go through a gamut of emotions. But when you move and get yourself out there is also when you realise what a great place we actually live in.” Rio couldn’t agree more. “People need to understand it’s okay to feel uncertain. It’s okay to have anxiety, to have questions about what’s happening. We’ve got two children back in England, and have our younger kids here. Personally, I draw peace from seeing the way things have been laid out here.”

Working together

Watching them syncing with each other perfectly on stage begs a question — do such collaborations often mean that individual working styles need to be tweaked? “We have a lot of disagreements,” admits Rio. “We squabble a lot, but that is only normal.” Kate agrees that they have different ways of doing things. “I am a bit of a perfectionist. Rio is all about going with the flow. But we actually love working together, especially things related to fitness. I also think that in every partnership — whether it is personal or professional, you have to compromise a bit; it’s part of being in a relationship.”

Being a celebrity couple, especially in the age of social media, is not easy. With greater online scrutiny comes a greater need to preserve one’s image. In that sense, do they feel the need to present a picture perfect version of themselves when in public? “It’s something we have tried to do over the years — put the pressure off from us to be perfect. Imperfection is normal,” says Rio. “We don’t feel the need to be a picture-perfect couple in front of others. We only believe in showing our reality. Now reality is not always perfect, but it is important to show that too,” says Kate.

 With the duo returning ‘home’, we can expect to see a lot from them. Kate says there is lots coming from her wellness platform. “There is a need to simply the idea of wellness. Because sometimes, it can get overwhelming. We have been planning a lot of events. We did not obviously anticipate the scale.” Rio agrees. “We want to give back to people. We want them to take back something once they are done with these sessions."