The family business · Second term · № 46

Family business

Trump-branded golf club and villas announced inside Qatari state-founded firm's Simaisma project

“We are incredibly proud to expand the Trump brand into Qatar through this exceptional collaboration with Qatari Diar and Dar Global.” Eric Trump
Date
, Qatari Diar and Dar Global press release
Subject
Qatar
Benefit
Real estate and licensing
Government
Qatar Freedom House: Not Free (2025)
Beneficiary
Donald Trump (Trump Organization)
Amount
$5.25 million (license fee reported in financial disclosure)
Topic
Ethics & conflicts
Era
Second term

What happened

On April 30, 2025, Qatari Diar signed an agreement with Dar Global to develop Trump International Golf Club and Trump-branded villas on about 790,000 square meters of its Simaisma coastal project north of Doha. Qatari Diar was established by the Qatar Investment Authority, the country's sovereign wealth fund, and is chaired by Qatar's minister of municipality. The announcement came two weeks before Trump visited Doha on the first major foreign trip of his second term. CNN reported that the Trump Organization had pledged in January 2025 to make no new deals with foreign governments; spokesperson Kimberly Benza told CNN the company has no affiliation, partnership or engagement with Qatari Diar or Qatar's government, that its branding agreement is with Dar Global, and that it "does not conduct business with any government entity." Trump's financial disclosure for 2025 showed $5.25 million in licensing income tied to the project, according to CNBC and The National. CNBC said it found no evidence that the project influenced any agreements between the two governments.

Sources

  1. QATARI DIAR SIGNS STRATEGIC AGREEMENT WITH DAR GLOBAL TO DEVELOP TRUMP INTERNATIONAL GOLF CLUB AND TRUMP VILLAS, A BEACHSIDE ULTRA LUXURY COMMUNITY WITHIN SIMAISMA MASTERPLAN PR Newswire, Apr 30, 2025
  2. Luxury skyscrapers, golf courses and cryptocurrency: Trump's rapidly expanding Middle East business CNN, May 13, 2025
  3. Trump golf course deal announced in Qatar ahead of US president's visit Middle East Eye, Apr 30, 2025
  4. Trump's foreign licensing business booms to $59.5 million as Gulf developers pay CNBC, Aug 10, 2026
  5. Gulf developers bring windfall to Trump family The National, Jul 1, 2026
  6. Qatar: Freedom in the World 2025 Country Report Freedom House, 2025