LIV Golf isn’t satisfied with just big names.
A New York Times Report states that the Saudi-backed circuit “considered assembling a all-star board of sports, business, and political titans”, including NBA legend Michael Jordan and former Secretary of State Condoleezza rice.
Stephenson stated to the Times, “I didn’t know that I was on this list, and have never been approached.” Stephenson, a board member of the PGA Tour said he would decline if LIV asked him, noting that it would be a short conversation.
A player handbook stated that a LIV board would have 10 members. However, the Times reported that nine of those identified as targets were never approached.
The larger Times article which analyzed hundreds confidential documents from Project Wedge (a proposal for Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund) provided the findings. Yasir Al-Rumayyan is the chairman of the PIF, as well as the English Premier League team Newcastle United, and Saudi Aramco (the state-owned petroleum company that sponsors the Ladies European Tour).
LIV Golf, which has the PIF as its financial backer, has been long criticized for being a way for Saudi Arabia to sportswash its human right record. Saudi Arabia has been accused in a wide range of human rights violations, including torture, forced disappearances, and politically motivated killings. Members of the Saudi royal family and government were also accused of being involved in the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi (a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist).
The Times was told by experts that Saudi Arabia’s $2B investment in the Kingdom shows it has “aspires beyond the financial.”
Simon Chadwick, a professor at Skema Business School, Paris, stated to the Times that “the margins might not be thin but that doesn’t really matter.” You’re establishing Saudi Arabia’s legitimacy as an event host, a sporting powerhouse and legitimate to decision-makers and governments all over the globe.
McKinsey & Company is a long-standing Saudi advisor dating back to 1970s. They analyzed the financials of LIV and determined it to be “a high risk high reward endeavor.” The Times also reported a McKinsey document which listed 12 players who were targeted by LIV. Only four players have signed up so far – Dustin Johnson and Henrik Stenson.
Tiger Woods attacked LIV’s leadership on Monday and demanded that CEO Greg Norman be fired. LIV recently revealed part of its 2023 schedule , in which 12 teams and 48 people will compete for $405 million in prize money. The new season of the LIV Golf League is still in its infancy.
