US-based fast food restaurant company Subway has announced that it will add more than 4,000 locations to its global footprint over the next two decades.

The restaurant brand stated that agreements were signed in Bahrain, Georgia, Mainland China, Uruguay, Costa Rica and Panama to open new outlets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Asia Pacific (APAC) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Over the past two years, the company has signed 15 master franchise agreements or country development agreements across these regions, totalling more than 9,000 future restaurant commitments.

Subway CEO John Chidsey said: “There is a significant opportunity for Subway to expand its presence around the world and the new master franchise agreements are a reflection of the confidence that operators have in Subway and our transformation journey.

“As we continue to execute against our international expansion strategy, we are excited to grow the brand with new and existing international multi-unit and multi-brand operators to serve more guests around the world.”

In Bahrain, a master franchise agreement was signed with Food Innovation Company and will help Subway.

In Georgia, a franchise agreement was signed with Wissol Group.

Bahrain and Georgia represent the sixth and seventh master franchise agreements in the EMEA region, which will double the restaurant footprint in that region.

In the LAC region, Subway is partnering with multi-unit, multi-brand operator Grupo Vierci to double its presence in Uruguay.

In Costa Rica and Panama, Subway signed master franchise agreements with operators familiar with its business model.

With the addition of these new partners in LAC, Subway now has four master franchise agreements in the region, including Brazil.

Earlier this month, Subway signed an agreement with Shanghai Fu-Rui-Shi Corporate Development (FRS) to strengthen its reach in Mainland China.