Across the globe, spies gather in inconspicuous dens, where they meet contacts and hold discreet conversations. This week, Intelligence Online explores an institution inherited from the time of British presence in the country, the Bahrain Rugby Club. Aside from sports fans and expat gatherings, you'll find businessmen hoping to network, diplomats gleaning information and US soldiers socialising during a Manama stopover.
At the Bahrain end of the King Fahd Causeway, a vital artery for the Bahraini economy and entry point for Saudi youth on their way to party in Manama - oft referred to as the Cancun of the Gulf -, sits the Bahrain Rugby Club, a place to win friends and influence others.
The club began in 1971 as a wing of one of the oldest clubs in Bahrain, the British Club, and became an independent establishment three years later. Though best known for its successful rugby team, crowned West Asia Premiership champions
