Scott O’Neil, CEO of LIV Golf, gave an interview this Thursday at the end of the first day of the tournament in Mexico City to address the huge uncertainty currently surrounding the Saudi league. He did it on friendly ground, in front of the circuit’s two commentators, Arlo White and David Feherty. O’Neil implied that the PIF is history, that there will be no more funding from the Saudi government and that, therefore, LIV Golf must learn to walk alone, without the powerful training wheels of the Fondo Soberano de Inversión Pública.
O’Neil did not say it verbatim, but it was perfectly clear. He did not mention the PIF at any point, did not deny reports claiming there will be no further financial backing from it and, on the contrary, said that work is underway on a new business structure, admitted it will be difficult and that they need to find money from under the stones. He trusts the product, as one would expect, and now it remains for sponsors and players, without the PIF’s backing, to trust the same as him, commit to staying in the league and put up the money.
Once daddy PIF’s weekly allowance has been cut off, it’s time to go to the market to seek funding. The sale of the teams is the first option. «Changes are going to come. You can ask practically anyone of the 50 people I met in Augusta. I laid out the plan. We have one, and it’s going to… it may surprise some people. But I’ll tell you that this idea of putting the teams on the market… I had two calls this morning. This idea that if it’s necessary to raise money… probably. This is a business», he said.
It should be remembered that this was always LIV Golf’s plan. The PIF, with Yassir Al Rumayyan at the helm, made it clear from the start. In two or three years teams should operate autonomously, with their own budgets and financing. Five years have passed since the league’s birth and that has not happened. At the start of each season the Fondo Soberano found itself forced to inject hundreds of millions for the league’s survival. It seems that is over.
The big question is whether LIV Golf is an attractive enough product to capture the huge funding it needs to maintain player contracts and the large prize funds of its tournaments. O’Neil says that last year «we did almost $500 million in sponsorship with big brands like Rolex, HSBC, Aramco; they are global brands. I think we are in a wonderful position». First, assuming the figures are correct, one would need to see of those $500 million how much came from Aramco, the Saudi oil company, and whether it will continue to invest once the PIF is off the map. And second, LIV Golf spends about those $500 million each year just on prize funds. Now add the player contracts and the organisation’s own costs, broadcast and promotion for each of the tournaments. Huge sums of money.
It is said that the PIF has put around $6 billion into the league since 2022. That implies an annual average of more than double what was secured from sponsors last year. The numbers barely add up. O’Neil himself admitted it will not be easy. «Could it be complicated? Absolutely, and that’s why we signed up — not just me, you, all of us here in Mexico City. We signed up for this adventure. It’s the trip of a lifetime, or rather, the round of a lifetime», he told his interlocutors.
LIV Golf needs to find buyers for its teams. In this respect the strategy is clear, although it sounds very difficult. The bet is on everyone except the United States, even though it is admitted that the United States is the best market that exists for sport. «I’m American. I love the United States market. It’s the number one television market in the world, full stop. The number one sponsorship market in the world, full stop. In golf, in sport. But in the long run, do you want to bet on 340 million people or on 7.5 billion people? That’s all I’m saying. That’s the only difference: I’m betting on 7.5 billion people. And that’s something that should excite us, because golf should be seen all over the world with some of the biggest stars of the game, and that’s what we’re doing».
From a sporting point of view, the hardest thing will not only be signing big stars, but keeping those who are currently there. Bryson DeChambeau’s contract ends this year and he has not yet renewed. Jon Rahm’s ends in 2028 and we’ll see if he wants to renew. It seems that money will no longer be the way to convince them, as happened in the league’s formation. At least, that is what one deduces from O’Neil’s romantic speech. «The first thing I say when I talk to any player is that LIV Golf is not for everyone. If you want to spend your time in the United States, this is the wrong league for you. If you like being at home and you don’t like to travel, and you like always practising on the same course and you like managing your own schedule, this is not for you. But I’ll tell you one thing: if you want to grow golf around the world, this is for you. If you love exploring new cultures and new courses and living new experiences, this is for you. If you feel that golf can sometimes be lonely… this is the toughest and most solitary sport in the world. And there’s nothing like having a team after a bad round to pick you up». Plain as day.
In short, LIV Golf is going to try to survive without the PIF. It is not an easy task, but they will put all their efforts into it in the coming months, at least for now.
The ‘For Sale’ sign has been put up.
