The first NBA games in the United Arab Emirates will take place next preseason, sources told ESPN's The Undefeated on Tuesday.

The NBA and the Department of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi have agreed to a multiyear partnership, starting with two preseason contests next year.

The two exhibitions will take place in Abu Dhabi in October 2022. The participating NBA teams and host venue will be announced at a later date.

This will not be the first time NBA games are played in the Middle East. Four NBA teams have previously played in six exhibition games in Tel Aviv, Israel, against Israeli professional clubs.

There are currently seven players from the Middle East in the NBA -- Turkey's Alperen Sengun (Houston Rockets), Cedi Osman (Cleveland Cavaliers), Enes Kanter (Boston Celtics), Furkan Korkmaz (Philadelphia 76ers) and Omer Yurtseven (Miami Heat), Israel's Deni Avdija (Washington Wizards) and Egypt's Abdel Nader (Phoenix Suns).

The new partnership will also include appearances by former and current NBA players at interactive fan events, the launch of Jr. NBA Leagues for boys and girls at schools across the UAE, NBA FIT Clinics promoting health and wellness and an NBA 2K League exhibition event.