LIV Golf is officially entering its next—albeit extremely uncertain—era, as Sept. 1 marks the last day of employment for the majority of the league’s employees, who are being laid off with the Saudi PIF’s funding now over.
Employees were officially informed last week that their employment would end the first week of September. The news was not a surprise since LIV gave 60-day notices of potential layoffs back in July, in accordance with legal requirements in both the U.S. and U.K. LIV had more than 300 employees worldwide at its peak.
“We are scaling back operations as we transition to the next chapter of LIV Golf and work toward making LIV 2.0 a reality,” a LIV spokesperson said in a statement to Front Office Sports last week. “We are grateful to our employees for their hard work and dedication in building LIV Golf, and we remain committed to supporting those affected through this transition.”
Some LIV employees have been posting messages about their exit from the league on social media. LIV CEO Scott O’Neil in a LinkedIn post on Monday wrote, in part, “As we continue on the journey toward LIV 2.0, the organization will look different. Change is never easy—particularly when it involves people you respect and care about. But chapters ending do not erase what was written in them. Whatever comes next will stand on the foundation this remarkable group of people created. So, to everyone who has been a part of this journey: thank you.”
Bankruptcy is a likely next step for LIV, which remains in talks with BC Partners Credit about a potential new funding deal; LIV had been seeking between $250 million and $350 million in new money. A financial restructuring is a necessary step in the transition to “LIV 2.0,” sources close to LIV’s situation tell FOS, and a Chapter 11 bankruptcy process would be intended to extend LIV’s lifespan, not shut the league down permanently. The bankruptcy process could begin as soon as next week, according to the Financial Times. LIV is hoping to finalize a transaction with BC Partners this month.
The plan is for LIV to be majority-owned by players in its next iteration, with equity stakes being offered to those who remain with the league moving forward. “The entirety of our focus is to get to this transaction and get through it,” O’Neil said last month at the season-ending LIV Golf Indianapolis event. “Without the players, that becomes very difficult. I have a good level of confidence in my conversation that we’ll have a critical mass of the right players to move this league forward.”
Many players still have years left on their contracts and are owed money—but settling those deals is becoming complicated because the PIF is responsible for paying out any previous contracts. Jon Rahm is the biggest of those, reported to still be owed more than $100 million as part of his multi-year deal that was signed ahead of the 2024 LIV season.
Beyond players, many former LIV vendors and contractors say they remain unpaid—and lawsuits against the league are piling up. O’Neil said in Indianapolis he hopes LIV will be able to pay those vendors and contractors and “do right by them.”
Should LIV sort out its new financial reality, creating a 2027 schedule will be a crucial next step. The PGA Tour released its full 2027 schedule last week. The entire 2027 DP World Tour schedule has not been announced yet but many event dates have been confirmed.
