Julien Stropoli takes down the Battle of Malta Main Event after beating his buddy, heads-up, to win the largest-ever live tournament held in the country.

When your Prime Minister stands up at a United Nations (UN) conference and calls cryptocurrency the inevitable future of money you know you’ve arrived in a radically open-minded country.

So, maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that the Battle of Malta (BOM) has managed to lure a record-breaking 3,816-entrants into its award-winning tournament, making it the largest-ever live multi-table tournament in Maltese poker history.

And the island has hosted some of the big boys.