Papa Johns extends PJP partnership to 2036, including the UAE

Papa Johns and PJP Investments Group have announced a ten-year extension to their development agreement, continuing their exclusive partnership across markets including the UAE until the end of 2036. The agreement includes plans to increase the brand’s restaurant network in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq from 167 locations today to more than 400 by that date, according to the announcement published in Gulf News on 2 November 2026.

Development agreement extended across four markets

The announcement combines the continuation of an existing contractual relationship with a target for expanding the restaurant network. PJP Investments Group is the exclusive Papa Johns franchisee in all four countries, making the UAE part of a long-term regional agreement rather than a standalone market within the announced partnership.

The extension covers the development agreement between the two parties, with the exclusive partnership continuing until the end of 2036. This is therefore a renewal of an existing relationship with a larger growth ambition, not the arrival of a new brand in the UAE or the appointment of a new franchisee there. That distinction matters when assessing the opportunities that might arise from the announcement.

For the UAE’s franchise community, one of the agreement’s main implications is a longer planning horizon for the brand and its partner. Rather than announcing a single opening, it links the continuation of the partnership to a numerical target for a network spanning four countries. However, that target remains a future plan: it does not represent restaurants already opened or projects already completed.

More than 400 restaurants: a regional target, not a UAE allocation

The announced plan starts from a base of 167 restaurants across the four markets and aims to exceed 400 by 2036. This would more than double the network’s current size, with the difference between the existing total and the final target exceeding 233 restaurants across the countries covered by the agreement.

These figures should not, however, be applied to the UAE alone. Both the current total and the future target are regional, and the announcement does not specify the UAE’s share of either existing restaurants or planned growth. Nor does it break down the targets for Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq and the UAE, so it is not possible to rank these markets by expected expansion.

The published details do not include a list of UAE cities earmarked for openings, named sites or an annual rollout schedule. Reading the news as an announcement of a specific number of new restaurants in Dubai or Abu Dhabi would therefore go beyond the information available. What is confirmed is that the UAE falls within the geographical scope of an extended partnership with a shared growth target.

What does the agreement mean for the UAE’s franchise community?

The agreement illustrates expansion built on a relationship between an international franchisor and a franchisee operating across several markets. In this case, the announcement concerns the extension of the partnership with PJP, not an invitation for new investors to secure restaurant operating rights directly from Papa Johns in the UAE.

This is a practical distinction for anyone following brand announcements in search of investment opportunities. A plan to increase restaurant numbers does not, on its own, establish that sub-franchises are available or explain how other parties might participate in the expansion. Equally, PJP’s status as exclusive franchisee is not enough to establish the scope of its contractual rights or the arrangements for granting additional operating rights.

Suppliers, property owners and service providers interested in the network’s growth can view the announcement as a signal of long-term expansion plans. Identifying a specific commercial opportunity, however, will require further information about sites, timings and operational requirements. The regional target indicates the partnership’s overall direction, while practical decisions require details specific to each market and project.

What should investors watch for next?

The most important next step in understanding the agreement’s local impact will be to watch for announcements setting out the UAE’s share of the development plan. Practical questions include how many restaurants will be added, where they will be located, when they will open, and whether the two parties will announce new operating formats or collaboration arrangements. These remain questions to follow up, not settled details of the announced agreement.

Any subsequent update should also be assessed by distinguishing between three things: the partnership’s duration, which runs until the end of 2036; the regional target of more than 400 restaurants; and actual openings announced by the two parties. Each measures a different aspect of the plan’s progress, and none is a substitute for the others.

Practical takeaway: The extension of the Papa Johns–PJP partnership is significant growth news that includes the UAE. However, it should not be used to estimate local openings or assume that new franchise rights are available before those details are officially announced.