Jon Rahm speaks out about LIV Golf shutdown rumors as PIF confirms sale of Al Hilal
Jon Rahm has finally spoken up about the rumors that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) might stop funding the LIV Golf Tour. The Financial Times said on Wednesday that PIF was planning to pull out, just hours after other reports claimed LIV officials had an ‘emergency meeting’ about the tour’s future.
Before the LIV Golf Mexico City event started on Thursday, LIV CEO Scott O’Neil denied there was any ‘emergency meeting’ but didn’t comment on the speculation about PIF’s support. He did say that the 2026 LIV season will go on ‘exactly as planned,’ adding: “I want to be clear: Our season continues without any interruptions, full speed ahead.”
Despite O’Neil’s comments, uncertainty around LIV, which launched in 2021 as a competitor to the PGA, hasn’t gone away in the last day. Rahm, who is LIV’s biggest signing and reportedly got a $300 million bonus when he left the PGA Tour in 2023, was asked about the rumors after his first round in Mexico City.
“Until the people in charge told me if the rumors were true or not… I didn’t see a point in thinking about it or wasting time,” the Spaniard told reporters. “We were here, ready to play, so I focused on preparing for the tournament.”
He explained that the news came so suddenly that he wasn’t too worried. “Usually, before rumors start, someone inside the league knows something. This all happened so fast that I just didn’t stress about it.”
Rahm was even asked about the rumors during the live LIV broadcast in Mexico City. He told the on-course reporter, Su-Ann Heng: “I can’t waste energy on things I can’t control. My mindset was to keep working throughout the week, act like normal, and get ready for the tournament. That’s it.”
For Rahm, LIV’s future is especially important since earlier this year, he refused to sign a PGA DP World Tour waiver that would let him play LIV events without financial penalties. Right now, the 2023 Masters winner owes around $3 million in unpaid fines, which he isn’t paying.
In other related news, PIF, which also owns Newcastle United, agreed to sell their 70% stake in Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal. PIF took majority control of four Saudi teams—Al Hilal, Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, and Al Nassr—in 2023. They sold Al Hilal’s stake to Kingdom Holding Company, a private firm based in Riyadh listed on the Saudi stock exchange.
According to a press release, the sale fits with PIF’s plan to ‘maximize returns and redeploy capital within the Saudi economy.’ This is important because on Wednesday, PIF revealed its next investment strategy for 2026 to 2030.
PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who also chairs Newcastle, called the new plan a ‘natural progression’ toward creating sustainable value and improving investment efficiency by grouping PIF’s 13 strategic sectors into six integrated economic ecosystems.
The press release added: “This strategy will focus on building competitive local ecosystems to connect sectors, unlock the full potential of strategic assets, maximize long-term returns, and keep driving Saudi Arabia’s economic transformation while improving its citizens’ quality of life.”