Website rugbyleaguehub.com reported that Sol Mokdad, the president of the UAE rugby league commission, was detained by police on Wednesday night on the orders of the General Authority of Youth Welfare and Sport.

The arrest appears to have been made after a complaint from UAE Rugby concerning the use of the word 'rugby', while the government now appears to view the UAE Rugby League as an illegal organisation.

Mokdad has been the head of UAE rugby league since 2007 and the popularity of the sport has steadily started to grow in the region. And despite an International Rugby Board directive confirming that rugby league is in fact a different sport to rugby union, the message doesn't appear to have filtered through to parts of the Gulf.

Respected rugby league journalist and Fairfax contributor Steve Mascord sourced a letter sent to players for rugbyleaguehub.com, which informed them of not only the cancellation of a game but the arrest of the code's boss.

"The League/Commission's President was arrested on Wednesday night as a result of a police case taken out against him by the General Authority of Youth Welfare and Sport. We have suggested to the remaining committee members of the league to suspend the remaining fixtures of the League season until such time that it becomes clear as to the outcome of the arrest of the Commissions President," the letter said.

"What is clear is that the League/Commission as an organisation is now viewed by the Governing Bodies of the United Arab Emirates as an illegal organisation."

Mascord has reported that the official charges are fraud, with the suggestion that UAE rugby league was masquerading as rugby union and procuring sponsorship as a result.

While the game in Australia spent the week discussing the fate of Greg Bird, that of the embattled Mokdad appears far more serious. One can only hope he can find a better lawyer.