The LIV Golf League finally has its major TV deal and FOX Sports is back in the golf business.
LIV announced on Thursday that it had reached a multi-year media rights agreement with FOX Sports to televise all 54 holes of its 14-tournament schedule, beginning Feb. 6-8 with the opening tournament of LIV’s fourth season at the Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia.
Terms were not disclosed in the release. In the previous three seasons, CW had carried the second and third rounds of LIV events, with the first round on the CW App.
More than half of the scheduled 210 hours of competition will be on FOX Sports but the announcement didn’t address which tournaments. LIV Golf will hold events in nine countries and at U.S. sites in Miami, Washington D.C., Dallas, Chicago, Indianapolis and Detroit. Other platforms that will carry LIV Golf include FS1, FS2 and the FOX Business Network.
All LIV coverage will be available on the FOX Sports App and the LIV Golf+ subscribers.
Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith among returning captains
The announcement was the first big splash in the tenure of LIV CEO Scott O’Neil, who officially replaced Greg Norman earlier this week.
LIV will have 13 four-player teams this year. Among the 2025 team captains are Cameron Smith of Ponte Vedra Beach (Rippers GC), 2024 Player of the Year Jon Rahm (Legion XIII), Bryson DeChambeau (Crushers GC), Brooks Koepka (Smash GC), Phil Mickelson (HyFlyers GC), Dustin Johnson (4Aces GC), Sergio Garcia (Fireballs GC), Joaquin Niemann (Torque GC).
“We are thrilled to partner with FOX Sports,” said O’Neil in a statement. “LIV Golf is getting bigger and bolder, and this relationship signals the next phase of growth as our League joins the company of the nation’s premier sports leagues and conferences.”
FOX had covered USGA events for five years
It also marks a return to FOX to tournament golf. The network had coverage USGA events, including the U.S. Open, from 2015-2020.
“FOX Sports is excited to broadcast the LIV Golf League, showcasing athletes at the top of their game competing at an elite level for viewers across the nation,” said Jordan Bazant, Executive Vice President, FOX Sports, in his statement. “The addition of LIV Golf is a natural fit for FOX Sports’ prominent slate of big events, world-class names and premium sports coverage.”
LIV said in the release that its on-air team will return with Arlo White as the anchor and David Feherty and Jerry Foltz as analysts in the booth. Dom Boulet and Su-Ann Heng will be the on-course analysts.
LIV Golf’s Club 54 pre- and post-round shows will again be hosted by Christian Crosby, with Rachel Drummond, Foltz, Heng, and Boulet. The pre-and post-round programs will be featured live on FOX Sports’ platforms or on the LIV Golf+ app.
What does this mean for negotiations with PGA Tour?
The current state of talks between the Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund, which bankrolls LIV Golf, was not addressed by LIV Golf in announcing the deal.
The Tour got an infusion of capital by partnering with the Strategic Sports Group last year but there have been no public reports of meetings between the Tour and representatives from the PIF or LIV Golf since last September in New York.
Outgoing PGA Tour COO Ron Price recently told the Times-Union, “I’m very optimistic that we’re going to have a very positive outcome for our players, for our fans and for all of our constituents,” and cited the complexities of the issues as the reason progress is perceived as slow.
The Tour has network deals with CBS and NBC, which also share golf’s major championships (the Masters and PGA are on CBS; the U.S. Open and British Open are on NBC).
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: LIV Golf finally secures a major TV media rights deal with FOX Sports
