Rival sports leagues that try to encroach on long-established leagues often fail in their attempts to succeed.
The National Football League, established in 1920, has faced challenges from several competing leagues that failed, including the All-America Football Conference, which lasted four seasons before folding after their 1949 season.
The World Football League’s attempt to compete against the NFL in 1974-75 failed and the league went out of business, and about 10 years later, the original USFL operated from 1983-86 and folded, winning $1 in an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL as a consolation.
LIV Golf cancels event before bankruptcy
And now fledgling international sports league LIV Golf Inc.‘s future is uncertain after finishing its season on Aug. 23 in Indianapolis and filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sept 8.
The league also cancelled its Team Championship that was scheduled to begin Aug. 27 in Detroit.
The West Trenton, N.J. debtor and 54 affiliates filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey with a restructuring support agreement, backed by a proposed new investor, BC Partners Advisors, after its original investor Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia ended its support of the organization in April.
LIV Golf and London-based BC Partners contemplate the company continuing as a going concern through a player-first model, with the company majority owned by players. The parties are currently negotiating details of the ownership structure, according to a company statement.
Star golfer uncertain of return
The upstart league’s star golfer, Jon Rahm, who signed a contract with LIV Golf in December 2023 and won the league’s individual title three straight years, has said he is uncertain about his future with LIV as it faces bankruptcy and restructuring.
“There’s a lot of things that could happen and it’s one of those things where time is gonna tell,” Rahm told the BBC.
“I still have a contract with LIV 1.0 that I’m more than willing to fulfill, so like I said, time will tell,” Rahm said.
Rahm has not yet committed to continuing with a reorganized LIV Golf or a so-called LIV 2.0, however.
Two other LIV golfers, Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, have left LIV to return to the PGA tour, according to the BBC.
Public Investment Fund provides DIP loan
Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia has agreed to provide up to $49.6 million in debtor-in-possession financing to fund the debtor’s bankruptcy case, while BC Partners and other potential minority investors are expected to provide exit financing and recapitalize the reorganized company as the company’s plan sponsor.
LIV Golf, which listed $100 million to $500 million in assets and $500 million to $1 billion in liabilities in its petition, will also seek recognition of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy in England and Wales to protect its assets in those countries.
The golf league posted a message to its fans on Sept. 8 regarding the bankruptcy filing.
Golfers would be league owners
“The next phase of LIV Golf will be built around a sustainable business model and deeper alignment between players and the league, with team golf at its core,” LIV’s CEO Scott O’Neil said in the note. “Players will have the opportunity to share directly in the value they help create, while teams will be positioned to grow into enduring global sports businesses. And fans will remain at the center of everything we do.”
LIV Golf, founded in 2021, claims to be the world’s only global golf league, which featured 57 players from 21 countries competing across 10 countries and five continents in 2026. The league has 13 teams, a 14-tournament schedule, and some of the top golfers in the world.
The league broadcasts to nearly 1 billion households across 250 international markets and territories, while LIV Golf has generated over $1.5 billion in economic impact across host markets since its launch, according to the league.
LIV Golf differs from the PGA Tour and Europe’s DP World Tour, as the longtime established tours compensate players through prize purses, requiring golfers to cover their expenses, such as hotel and travel for themselves and staff. Players also need to sign their own sponsors for personal branding.
To attract top quality golfers, LIV Golf offered upfront payments as well as annual payments to cover the rights to the players sponsorship inventory. Teams sell sponsorships for their organization’s benefit and not any one player, according to a declaration by the debtor’s Chief Restructuring Officer David Orlofsky of Alix Partners LLP.
Annual payments compensated players for their lost earning potential from not being able to sell their own sponsorships.
LIV Golf required significant investments from affiliates of its ultimate equity holder, the Public Investment Fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, totaling about $5 billion in equity capital since it launched in 2021.
Over its five-year existence, LIV Golf ran at an operational loss and was years away from standalone profitability. The Public Investment Fund in April 2026 asserted that it would cease further equity funding, but would fund operations through the 2026 season, according to the declaration.
LIV Golf hired restructuring advisers who identified BC Partners Advisors as a lead investor willing to fund operations, contingent on the debtor filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Related: Beloved pizza dining chain’s franchisee closes more locations
