Report: LIV Golf Reaches Deal For U-S Telecasts

LIV Golf, the controversial Saudi-funded golf tour that launched last year and has signed stars such as Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, finally has a television home in the United States, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Nexstar Media Group Inc. said it reached a multiyear deal with LIV Golf to broadcast the league on its CW Network, the broadcast network it acquired majority control of last year.

Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

LIV Golf Chief Executive and Commissioner Greg Norman said in a statement that the deal “will provide accessibility for our fans and maximum exposure for our athletes and partners.”

The success of the partnership will be a primary factor in determining LIV Golf’s financial viability. Since LIV Golf launched last year, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign-wealth fund has committed at least $2 billion to the rebel golf circuit, but it has lacked the main revenue drivers of major professional sports—lucrative media rights and sponsorship deals.

To lure golfers such as Mickelson, Johnson and last year’s British Open champion, Cameron Smith, LIV has offered record-breaking prize funds at its tournaments and lucrative appearance fees. By poaching players from the PGA Tour, the Saudi-backed league has created a fissure in the sport.

LIV and the PGA Tour are locked in a court battle that is growing increasingly contentious. LIV and a handful of players are suing the Tour for allegedly violating antitrust law and behaving as a monopolist to dominate the professional golf industry. The Tour has countersued, accusing LIV of interfering with its deals in its mission to take over the sport, and has suspended the players that have bolted to the Saudi-backed upstart for violating their contracts.