The hits continue to pour in for LIV Golf, and the Public Investment Fund at U.S. Federal Court.
Last week a judge ruled against “sovereign immunity” claim by the PIF, Yasir El-Rumayyan, its governor. This is a significant blow to LIV, its financial backer, and LIV’s antitrust case against PGA Tour.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled Tuesday that the PGA Tour can add the PIF to its countersuit against LIV. This will further drag the financiers into the judicial weeds.
Judge also to unseal and make public LIV Golf documents that sealed Saudi’s fate as a party–showing how deeply the Public Investment Fund and Al-Rumayyan were involved in the new circuit’s operations https://t.co/xiZaZFPyjb
— Jodi Balsam (@JodiBalsam February 22, 2023
Phil Mickelson filed the original lawsuit in August. It was later expanded to include 10 more golfers. LIV Golf has taken over, although it is almost entirely funded by the PIF, with the exception of its new global partner. The wealth fund was established in 1971 to allow the Saudi Arabian government invest in different projects and companies. It is estimated that it has a value of over $650 billion.
LIV Golf is long criticized for being a means for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to sportwash its human rights record by securing guaranteed money and multimillion-dollar deals. Saudi Arabia has been accused in a wide range of human rights violations, including torture, forced disappearances, political killings, and inhumane treatment for prisoners. Saudi royals and the Saudi government were also accused of being involved in Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, a Washington Post columnist and journalist from Saudi Arabia.
