LIV Golf reveals top team changes as series seeks new investment

• Al-Rumayyan expected to step down
• Business consultants will lead board
• Snooker funding pulled

Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf has announced a management shake-up with two turnaround specialists set to take on the top roles as the rebel golf series looks to wean itself off its rich owners.

The kingdom’s $1 trillion Public Investment Fund has been widely tipped to walk away from the expensive breakaway series, which has reportedly cost Saudi Arabia more than $5 billion since its controversial launch in 2021, according to business of sport website Money in Sport.

A statement on Thursday said the reshuffle at the top of the organisation comes “as the league focuses on securing long-term financial partners to support its transition from a foundational launch phase to a diversified, multi-partner investment model”.

Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of PIF and also chairman of Newcastle United and oil major Saudi Aramco, is expected to step down from his role at the helm of the series.

AGBI has asked LIV Golf for comment.

Business consultants Gene Davis and Jon Zinman will lead a newly-established independent board.

Davis, who is chairman and CEO of Pirinate Consulting Group, has “decades of experience navigating complex transactions and turnarounds”, according to the statement. 

Zinman, founder and managing member of JZ Advisors, an independent strategic advisory company, has “expertise in driving financial and operational transformation for companies navigating complex reorganisations”.

Further reading:

• PIF may declare force majeure on LIV Golf, sources say
• LIV Golf hires Citi to sell minority stake in two teams
• LIV Golf ‘between a rock and a hard place’ as losses mount

Speculation over the future of LIV Golf intensified in April following the publication of a new investment strategy from PIF, which failed to make reference to any of the fund’s investments in sports. As well as golf, this includes football, tennis, Formula 1, boxing and e-sports.

It was revealed this week that PIF has pulled its funding for the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters after just two of 10 planned events were held.

Thursday’s statement said LIV Golf is ready to “engage in constructive, forward-looking discussions with prospective global investors and partners who share its vision for an inclusive and modernised game”.

Davis, who has been named chairman of the independent directors committee, said: “The executive leadership team, along with Jon and I, see a clear opportunity to help the league formalise its structure, attract and secure long-term capital, and position the business for growth while continuing to promote the game across the world.”

In October last year, LIV Golf’s UK operations reported a 2024 loss of $462 million, bringing accumulated losses to more than $1.1 billion since its launch. 
“LIV has been an expensive disaster,” Kieran Maguire, a UK sports economist, previously told AGBI.