President-elect Donald Trump made a high-profile appearance at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night for the UFC fights, turning the event into a major social gathering of political and corporate heavyweights.
Flanked by Elon Musk, musician Kid Rock, political figures RFK Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, as well as House Speaker Mike Johnson, Trump’s entourage underscored his influence across diverse sectors. The event also featured Dana White, UFC’s president, who has maintained close ties with Trump over the years. Yet, what caught most observers’ attention was Trump’s conversation with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the powerful head of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Al-Rumayyan’s presence alongside Trump set off speculation, especially given his significant role as chair of Saudi Aramco, the oil giant, and Maaden, Saudi Arabia’s leading mining company. He is also a notable figure in sports, as chairman of England’s Newcastle United Football Club and a key force behind LIV Golf. Last year, the PIF spearheaded a groundbreaking deal to unify the game of golf globally, bridging long-standing gaps between the PGA Tour, the DP World Tour, and LIV Golf.
The PIF’s entry into golf underscored Saudi Arabia’s strategic interest in reshaping global sports as an investment frontier, even as human rights concerns linger. The fund has been criticized for its connection to Saudi governance and human rights records, but it has continued to expand its reach into sports and entertainment, with backing from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and oversight by Al-Rumayyan. The fund’s assets were last valued around $925 billion, an extraordinary figure that reflects its growing impact across industries.
With the PIF’s backing, LIV Golf has quickly shaken up the golf world, offering players lucrative opportunities and an alternative competitive platform. This intensified tensions with the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour until a landmark deal was brokered to “unify the game of golf, on a global basis.”
This agreement effectively ended a bitter dispute among the tours, clearing the way for a new entity that will consolidate the three organizations under a more cooperative structure. As part of this alignment, the PIF was granted exclusive investment rights in the combined golf entity—a sign of Saudi Arabia’s long-term vision to assert influence in sports through targeted investments.
The deal also structured the new entity’s leadership: PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan is set to serve as CEO, while Al-Rumayyan will take on the role of chairman. Both leaders will hold seats on the executive committee of the board, which will also include a majority of PGA Tour-appointed directors. This arrangement gives the PGA Tour substantial control over the unified organization’s operations and voting decisions, while also allowing the PIF considerable influence in shaping the business landscape of international golf.
Trump’s presence alongside Al-Rumayyan at a widely publicized event like the UFC fight has fueled speculation about potential collaborations between Trump’s administration and Saudi business interests.
Given Trump’s previous business ties to the Middle East and the PIF’s expanding investments in global ventures, a closer partnership could emerge in the near future. However, Trump’s transition team did not comment on the specifics of his interaction with Al-Rumayyan, leaving the public to speculate on the significance of this high-profile conversation.
