budning: the pga-liv golf merger is about power more than sports
the new partnership follows an established pattern of countries — in this case saudi arabia — with bad human rights records finding ways to "sportswash" their reputations and gain influence on the world stage.
4 minute read
harold varner poses with the trophy after winning the liv golf invitational dc at trump national golf club. the saudis agreed to pay the former president an estimated $1 million per tournament for several liv golf events to be played at his golf courses.
rob carr
/
getty images
last week, the pga tour announced that it plans to merge with its arch-rival, the saudi-backed liv golf league. the groundbreaking news left some tour golfers “shocked, “confused” and “disgusted.”
many of the tour players felt betrayed by their commissioner, jay monahan, who secretly negotiated a deal with yasir al-rumayyan, the director of saudi arabia’s public investment fund (pif) that owns liv golf.
other tour players felt duped, as they had passed up on lucrative contracts to play on the saudi league, either due to their allegiance to the longstanding pga tour, for fear of being labelled as a defector, or in some circumstances, the discomfort of playing for a league run by an authoritarian state.
whether the deal will be ratified or not by u.s. antitrust authorities remains unclear. but what is obvious is that the impact of this deal is greater than golf or money alone. saudi arabia’s investment in liv golf is a reminder that sport, which is often viewed as a unifying and apolitical platform, can be used as a means for states to project power and influence political agendas.
consider last year’s fifa world cup, which was held in qatar. positioned between its iranian allies and saudi competitors, the qatari government partook in a deliberate campaign — often through illicit means such as bribery — to secure the right to host the event. qatar, which is not well-known for its football culture, seized the tournament as an opportunity to “sportswash” its egregious human rights abuses, its treatment of foreign workers, women, lgbtq rights, and participation in destabilizing regional wars, such as the one in yemen.
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during the world cup, qatari officials met with canada’s minister of international development, harjit sajjan, and canadian officials briefed sajjan to secure an arms contact with the qatari government. although sajjan denied following through on the brief, the episode reveals one of the ways that states use sport as a “soft power” — defined by political scientist joseph nye as the “power to attract” — to further their political goals.
in 2008, beijing used its spectacular olympic opening ceremonies to broadcast its rapid ascent to the global community. in 2022, having grown its gdp by 300 per cent, china again used the olympics to distract from its record of human rights violations, coercive diplomacy abroad, and its ongoing crimes against the uyghur people.
this is an established pattern. the 2018 world cup held in moscow; the 2014 olympics in sochi; the newly introduced saudi-arabian formula 1 grand prix; and the scheduled asia games set for china in 2022, qatar for 2030, and saudi arabia for 2034 are some of the many other examples suggesting countries that regularly undermine the rules-based international order will continue to invest billions of dollars in sports to cover up poor behaviour.
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a potential merger, then, between the pga tour and liv golf poses a real danger because it will provide an easy, lawful and direct route for saudi arabia to further exert influence abroad.
the deal would propel yasir al-rumayyan, a close confidant of the crown prince of saudi arabia, mohammad bin salman (mbs), into a position of authority and leadership. the newly formed league would be highly dependent on saudi dollars to finance cushy tournament purses, and the saudi delegation would find a seat at the table when it comes to investors, sponsors, and media contracts; ethics be damned.
in simpler terms, the saudis achieved exactly what they sought two years ago when forming the liv tour: a legitimate means for operating and exercising authority within one of the united states’ oldest and most respected sporting organizations. if unchecked, the saudis, qataris and other likeminded countries with deep pockets will continue to seek opportunities to invest in international sport leagues, teams and tournaments.
the power and prestige of operating in this space will further sow deep political and economic ties that will be challenging, if not impossible, to one day reverse. an illustration of this can be seen in the saudis’ agreements to pay former president donald trump an estimated $1 million per tournament for several liv golf events to be played at his golf courses. since trump departed from office, the pif has also committed at least $2 billion to a new fund established by trump’s son-in-law, jared kushner.
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trump called the merger “a big, beautiful, and glamorous deal for the world of golf.” his emphatic reaction to the deal signals to the saudis that the former president is both unashamed and brazen about his ties to the kingdom. should he win his bid for re-election in 2024, the saudis will know they have a friend and business partner in the world’s most powerful office.
as canada and its allies begin to experience a resurgence in great power competition, we must remember that foreign interference does not exist in a vacuum. while traditional methods such as espionage or financially backing a certain candidate usually steal the headlines, other more tacit approaches exist, too. authoritarian countries will continue to use sport as a tool for political manipulation and statecraft.
at a certain point, the onus falls on the west, and in this case, the pga tour, to sound the alarm and yell “fore!”
kevin budning is a phd candidate at the norman paterson school of international affairs, carleton university, and an avid golfer.
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