Rory McIlroy expresses doubts about LIV Golf’s future and discusses returning players to the PGA Tour in a new podcast.
In a podcast episode over 60 minutes long of the series ‘Stick to Football’ from the English channel ‘The Overlap‘, released on Friday, Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy voiced skepticism about the long-term future of the LIV Golf League, which is funded by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF). McIlroy talked about his basic stance on LIV Golf and explained why he has no personal connection to the league. He also touched on the possibility of former PGA Tour players returning to the tour.
The five-time major winner and one of the sharpest critics of LIV Golf since its founding in 2022 speculated that the PIF might consider shutting down the newly formed league entirely if the project does not yield profits in the long term. McIlroy said, ‘I don’t know, but if LIV can’t excite the fans and they have invested so much money into this project without payoff, I don’t know how long they can sustain it.’
Although LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil announced at the end of October 2025 that the league has raised about half a billion euros in sponsorship funds over the past ten months, it remains unclear when profits might be realized. The newsletter ‘Money in Sport’ predicted in May 2025 that investments from the Saudi PIF would grow to five billion USD by the end of 2025. In the following October, it was also revealed that the British branch of the league recorded a total loss of 1.1 billion USD between its start and the end of 2024, with 450 million USD of that loss incurred in 2024 alone.
McIlroy: ‘I Don’t Like What LIV Golf Has Done to Our Sport’
‘I don’t like what LIV Golf has done to our sport because it caused this massive division. Last time on this podcast, I said I might have been too quick to judge the guys who went there because not everyone is in the same position as I am,’ McIlroy said, adding, ‘When you are offered double the money for the same work, it’s kind of hard to say no.’
At the same time, McIlroy believes LIV Golf hasn’t found lasting appeal among fans and viewers but acknowledged the league contains some positive elements. He described himself as a ‘traditionalist’ and suspected this influences his mindset. Nonetheless, he said, ‘They came in and said, ‘We’ll be different, we’ll be this, we’ll be that.’ Even the fact they switched from 54 to 72 holes to gain world ranking points is just like doing what everyone else does.’ He added, ‘So what is different – apart from the money?’