There’s no soothsayer in the world who can accurately predict what the future holds for LIV Golf. The once-disruptive league now finds itself on the brink of collapse after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September. However, the people tasked with helping restructure the league, BC Partners, appear confident about its prospects.
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“I think you can easily see a path in very short order to over a $100 million valuation per team,” Ted Goldthorpe, Head of BC Partners Credit, said about the 13 teams in LIV Golf. “I think that’s a real number.”
Whether that number is achievable is yet to be seen. But back in January, before Saudi Arabia’s PIF decided to pull funding from the league, LIV Golf believed each of its 13 franchises would reach $1 billion valuations. They had also thought about inviting minority investors for its teams at a $300 million valuation. While that didn’t happen, the teams’ ownership is currently split between the league and the team captains.
The league holds a 75 percent stake in each team, and the captains, including Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm, have 25 percent. And even after Saudi’s PIF pulled its money, LIV CEO Scott O’Niel believed the league’s real financial value lay in its 13 teams, rather than simply in the league itself. While LIV searched for new investment at the time, O’Neil argued that team ownership could become a major sports investment opportunity.
Having said that, BC Partners got additional benefits from investing in a company in losses. For instance, the buyer benefits from access to high-growth potential at a lower valuation. The buyer may gain strategic advantages such as proprietary intellectual property, skilled talent, customer bases, or synergies that accelerate their own operations. Meanwhile, accumulated losses can offer tax benefits by offsetting future taxable income.
And Goldthorpe is well aware of that, but he claims that wasn’t their motivation.
“I mean, there’s a big NOL in the US and in the UK, but that’s not the driving force behind the investment,” he added. “I think some of this has been misconstrued, like we’re all in on the LIV and we’re very committed to it. And the tax stuff, is it just an added benefit? Yes. There’s tax advantages when you have a bunch of losses, but that’s not the driving force behind the investment.”
Despite Ted Goldthorpe’s confidence in the league’s investment prospects, the reality is that several of LIV Golf’s biggest names remain uncommitted to the league’s 2027 iteration, including DeChambeau and Rahm. Sergio Garcia has gone a step further, filing a motion in bankruptcy court asking a judge to terminate his player contract as LIV undergoes its restructuring.
Garcia intends to return to the DP World Tour, joining a growing group of LIV players exploring their options beyond the breakaway league. A return to the PGA Tour is not impossible either, as demonstrated by players such as Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed. However, those looking to leave LIV will first have to resolve their existing contractual obligations with the league.
The ongoing restructuring could provide an avenue for players to do exactly that, as they have a window to resign. And LIV’s plan is to introduce a new equity model under which its players would own 52.5% of the company, while BC Partners and its co-investors would hold 45%, with the remaining 2.5% going to management.
That said, it remains to be seen whether LIV’s biggest names will actually stick around for the league’s next chapter. More importantly, if several high-profile players do decide to part ways, it will be interesting to see how BC Partners, which manages over $40 billion in assets, responds. And whether the investment group can maintain LIV’s value and competitive position without some of its biggest stars.