(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump’s resort near Miami will host the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tournament in April, according to a schedule posted Tuesday — a signal that the president-elect’s business ties to the Middle East will carry through his second term, along with concerns over conflicts of interest.
The event marks the fourth straight year that LIV will come to the Trump National Doral golf club, but it will be the first time with Trump as sitting US president. LIV is bankrolled by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and has also hosted events at Trump Organization properties in New Jersey and Washington, DC, since its first season in 2022.
“I am truly honored to welcome LIV Golf back to Trump Doral,” Eric Trump, the president-elect’s son and executive vice president of the Trump Organization, said in an emailed statement. LIV did not reply to a request for comment.
Trump is a major booster of the golf organization, which Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund financed to rival the venerable PGA Tour. The rift between the tours roiled professional golf but showed signs of thawing when the competitors announced in 2023 they were pursuing a deal. The two sides are still trying to agree to terms of the investment.
“They’ve been friends of mine for a long time,” Trump said of LIV’s leadership in 2022. “What they’re doing for golf is so great.”
Human rights advocates criticize LIV for operating under the auspices of the Saudi regime, which US intelligence linked to the 2018 murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
In his first term, Trump put his sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr. in charge of the Trump Organization, which owns his golf courses and other real estate holdings. He put his assets in a trust but declined to divest fully from the business — a decision that spurred criticism that his personal interests could influence his policies.
Though the Trump Organization is rooted in New York real estate, golf has become a more important source of revenue over time. US resort and residential properties made up more than $500 million in income for Trump, according to his most recent financial disclosures.
Separately Tuesday, Trump announced an investment of more than $20 billion to build new data centers in the US from Hussain Sajwani, the billionaire head of Damac Group. Sajwani previously partnered with Trump to build luxury golf courses in Dubai.
(Updates with statement from Eric Trump in third paragraph.)
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