The concept of sports washing is gaining prominence, particularly as Middle Eastern nations such as the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia have made their presence felt in the realm of sports. This strategy involves exploiting the widespread popularity of sports to bolster a country’s image, often overshadowing concerns like human rights abuses and gender disparities. Now, the controversial emergence of LIV Golf, exclusively funded by Saudi Arabia, further highlights the intricate relationship between sports and image management, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s latest report, “Geopolitics in Sport – Thematic Intelligence,” documents the major cases in sports washing in the last 20 years, which have become increasingly more frequent. Golf is yet another sport that has entered the spotlight, thanks to the formation of the highly controversial LIV Golf, which has been funded entirely by the Saudis. Several high-profile golfers took absurd sums of money to leave the PGA Tour and compete with LIV Golf, although some high-profile names including Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy criticised their actions, stating that they were turning their back on the organization that had given them everything they had.

Tanveer Aujla, Sport Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “It is a concerning trend that has been occurring in a multitude of sports that regimes with enormous sums of money and a poor image have been able to easily buy their way into things that people love. Sport is a favorite pastime of many, but some fans are now being faced with moral dilemmas about things they should simply be able to enjoy.”

Stories like the Saudi ownership of Newcastle and the 2022 FIFA World Cup being hosted by Qatar have understandably been controversial. However, while many fans have been concerned by these developments due to consistent stories of human rights abuses in both countries, many sports fans have remained aloof, maintaining that politics and sports should remain separate.

Aujla continues: “While some fans may want to ignore the political intersections, the reality is that politics has always influenced sport, and always will. Some of the most memorable moments and stories in sporting history have stemmed from wider political subjects. The two are inextricably linked, and fans wanting to bury their heads in the sand about the individuals who are becoming more involved in this sport will continue to find this harder and harder.”

The golfing world was stunned by news of the merger between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour. The latter stated that the move was motivated by the global unification of golf, but the joint venture will largely be funded by the PIF, giving the Saudis a potentially huge say on the future landscape of golf.

Aujla concludes: “The merger has effectively changed the future of golf forever, and the Saudis, purely through spending exorbitant amounts of money, have maneuvered themselves into a position where they can have a significant say on the future of the sport. Golf has likely never been one of the more popular sports in the nation, but the endless reserve of wealth that the PIF seems to possess has made that a non-issue. It could be very dangerous to leave the future of a sport in the hands of those who may not be that interested in its future well-being.”