The United Arab Emirates over a decade ago adopted Brazilian Jiu-jitsu as its officially recognised national sport. Scholars and commentators have described it as eccentric and unexpected move within the regional context of unprecedented investments in mega sporting events and mainstream sports such as football, motorsports, tennis, and mixed martial arts. While the UAE’s various sport investments are typically analysed in terms of soft power pursuit, economic diversification, or sportswashing (or a combination thereof), this proposal suggests that the UAE’s investment in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu may well extend beyond such interpretations. The UAE’s wide adoption of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu points to deeper strategic efforts by state leaders to reshape the attitudes, identities, and values of Emirati citizens amid perceived social, geopolitical, and economic challenges. As such, this proposal aims to address the gap in the literature by, first, investigating a case that has not received attention in the literature, and second, contributing a new concept within geopolitical economy of sport to explain the UAE’s vested interest in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu as vehicle for the making of citizens in the 21st century.