Jon Rahm breaks silence on LIV Golf shutdown rumours as PIF confirm Al Hilal sale

Jon Rahm has broken his silence on reports that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) are planning to withdraw their funding of the LIV Golf Tour.

The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that PIF were planning to pull funding, hours after it had been claimed elsewhere that LIV chiefs had been called to an 'emergency meeting' over the tour's future.

Ahead of the LIV Golf Mexico City event, which started on Thursday, LIV CEO Scott O'Neil denied reports of an 'emergency meeting', but did not address speculation surrounding PIF's position.

He did say that the 2026 LIV season will 'continue exactly as planned', adding: "I want to be crystal clear: Our season continues exactly as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle."

Read more: LIV Golf CEO sends urgent memo to staff amid reports of funding being cut

The uncertainty surrounding LIV, which was set up in 2021 as a rebel tour to the PGA, has not dissipated in the past 24 hours despite O'Neil's remarks.

And Rahm, who is LIV's biggest-ever signing and reportedly agreed to a $300 million contract bonus when he quit the PGA Tour in 2023, was pressed for his comments after his first round in Mexico City.

"Until the people in charge told me whether the rumours were true or not... for me, it didn't make sense to think about it or waste time thinking about it," the Spaniard told reporters.

"We were here. We knew we were going to play, so the idea was to prepare for a tournament. And that's it.

"Since everything happened so suddenly and so quickly, I wasn't very worried about it. Because normally, before the rumours start, we already know something. There's always someone within the league who knows something.

"It happened so fast that I really didn't worry about it."

The 31-year-old was even asked about the speculation on the live LIV broadcast in Mexico City.

He told on-course reporter Su-Ann Heng: "Can't really waste too much time on things I can't control, right?

"So my mindset was to keep working on the week, and operate as normal and keep working on the things that I felt like I needed to keep working on, and prepare for the tournament. That was it."

For Rahm, the future of LIV perhaps carries even more significance for him than other players as, earlier this year, he refused to sign a waiver with the PGA's DP World Tour which would have allowed him to play in LIV Golf events without receiving a financial penalty.

At present, the 2023 Masters winner has around $3 million in unpaid fines which he is currently refusing to pay.

PIF announce Al Hilal sale

A subplot to the drama surrounding LIV Golf is that PIF, who also own Newcastle United, have agreed to sell their 70 per cent stake in Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal.

PIF took over majority control of four Saudi clubs - Al Hilal, Al Ahli, Al Ittihad and Al Nassr - back in 2023.

They have sold their stake in Al Hilal to Kingdom Holding Company, a private holding company which is based in Riyadh and is listed on the Saudi stock exchange.

In a press release, it was stated that the decision was made as it 'aligns with PIF's strategy to maximise returns and redeploy capital within the Saudi economy'.

The reason that line is significant is because PIF announced the next stage of its investment policy, to cover the years between 2026 and 2030, on Wednesday.

PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who is the chairman of Newcastle, described the policy change as a 'natural progression towards sustainable value creation and enhanced investment efficiency' by transforming 'PIF's portfolio of 13 strategic sectors into six integrated economic ecosystems'.

A press release on the matter adds: "This strategy will focus on delivering competitive domestic ecosystems to connect sectors, unlock the full potential of strategic assets, maximise long-term returns, and continue to drive the economic transformation of Saudi Arabia and further enhance the quality of life of its citizens."