LIV Golf’s Saudi funding is officially being pulled

The rebel golf league plans to tell players and staff on Thursday that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is officially pulling the plug on its funding at the end of the season, according to The Wall Street Journal, ending weeks of speculation and rumors.

The Saudis have reportedly spent nearly $6 billion on LIV Golf, allowing it to pull in some of the sport’s biggest names at astronomical nine-figure salaries amid accusations of the country “sportswashing” its image.

The outfit struggled to gain a foothold with its team play and shortened tournament format, and lost a reported $1.1 billion between 2022-24 as a merger with the rival PGA Tour never came to fruition.

Crushers GC’s US player Bryson DeChambeau watches a drive from the 14th tee on the fourth day of the LIV Golf South Africa tournament. AFP via Getty Images

As rumors swirled regarding its financial backing, LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil has spent the last few weeks attempting to put out fires. Earlier this month, he sent an email to staffers that pushed back on reports the league’s folding was imminent.

“I want to be crystal clear: Our season continues exactly as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle,” O’Neil wrote in the email shared by multiple outlets. “While the media landscape is often filled with speculation, our reality is defined by the work we do on the grass. We are heading into the heart of our 2026 schedule with the full energy of an organization that is bigger, louder, and more influential than ever before.

“The life of a startup movement is often defined by these moments of pressure. We signed up for this because we believe in disrupting the status quo. We have faced headwinds since the jump, and we’ve answered every time with resilience and grace. Now, we answer by doing what we do best: putting on the most compelling show in sports.”

LIV Golf now has seven tournaments remaining on its schedule after it postponed its June stop in Louisiana earlier this week.

The back cover of the New York Post for early editions on April 16, 2026. New York Post

Players have seemingly begun making inquiries on fallback plans, with Today’s Golfer reporting Tuesday that “several” players have “sounded out the DP World Tour” as an alternate plan.