Rugby-England’s Vunipola Fined for Assault After Arrest in Mallorca

Billy Vunipola -  File photo by David Rogers/Getty Images
Billy Vunipola - File photo by David Rogers/Getty Images
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Rugby-England’s Vunipola Fined for Assault After Arrest in Mallorca

Billy Vunipola -  File photo by David Rogers/Getty Images
Billy Vunipola - File photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

England rugby international Billy Vunipola was sentenced to four months' imprisonment and fined 240 euros ($256.92) for assault and battery after being arrested by police in Mallorca, Spain, following an incident at a pub.

Palma's Examining Court also ordered him to pay 500 euros to a police officer who was injured during the incident following a speedy trial on Sunday.

Under Spanish law, a prison sentence of less than two years does not usually lead to serving any time behind bars unless there are previous criminal records.

According to a report in the Ultima Hora newspaper, Vunipola was tasered twice by police after threatening customers and security personnel and removing his shirt in a bar named Epic in Palma early on Sunday.

The report added that the 31-year-old was handcuffed by the police and taken to the Son Espases hospital in Palma, where he was sedated, before being taken to court on Sunday afternoon.

Vunipola plays for Premiership Rugby club Saracens, who said in a statement that they were aware of the incident and would deal with it "internally".

Vunipola has made 75 appearances for England and was part of the team that finished runners-up in the 2019 World Cup. He was not selected in the England squad for this year's Six Nations.

His brother Mako also played for England until his retirement in January, while his father played for Tonga.



Saudi Esports Federation President: We Seek to Establish the Kingdom as Global Hub for the Industry

Saudi Esports Federation President: We Seek to Establish the Kingdom as Global Hub for the Industry
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Saudi Esports Federation President: We Seek to Establish the Kingdom as Global Hub for the Industry

Saudi Esports Federation President: We Seek to Establish the Kingdom as Global Hub for the Industry

Saudi Esports Federation President Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz highlighted the strong connection between esports and traditional sports in terms of engagement, spectatorship, and participation.
Prince Faisal made these remarks during a plenary session titled "How Will Esports Create a New Global Olympic Arena" at the eighth Future Investment Initiative (FII8) conference, currently underway in Riyadh.
He also emphasized the importance of establishing key performance indicators to position Saudi Arabia as a global esports hub.
Prince Faisal stated: "We have a number of initiatives that contribute to facilitating dialogue between the public and private sectors and the growth of the businesses we seek. These include a company affiliated with the Public Investment Fund (PIF) that leads our investments, a fund within the National Development Fund, and a federation that works with professional players in local competitions and competes in international competitions."

He emphasized the importance of establishing an esports authority to establish the national policy for esports.
The president of the Saudi Esports Federation discussed the growth of the esports sector and the integration of esports with artificial intelligence.