Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's TGL golf league partners with Fanatics on team merchandise

Important Points

Later this fall, teams and brand names are set to debut.

Tiger Woods' and Rory McIlroy’s indoor golf team, TGL has signed a multi-year partnership with the ecommerce giant Fanatics.

Fanatics will be granted the exclusive license to produce and design merchandise for TGL, including team-specific items and league-wide merchandise. The terms of the agreement were not revealed.

Michael Rubin, Fanatics' founder and CEO, made a personal investment of his own in TMRW Sports during April.

In a press release, Brian Swallow said that Fanatics was uniquely positioned to bring TGL's vision to life of connecting golf with technology and culture. The company will also provide fans with an online and mobile commerce tool to connect them with their favorite teams and golfers.

Fanatics announced that it would provide a new store online where fans can show their passion for teams and the new league.

The league announced that the names and logos of teams will be revealed later this autumn.

Other big investors and owners have also joined the league, including Atlanta Falcons' owner Arthur Blank; Boston Red Sox's John Henry and Tom Werner; Alexis Ohanian (entrepreneur); tennis stars Serena Williams and Venus Williams, and New York Mets hedge fund manager Steve Cohen.

It announced on Thursday a new team of owners led by Marc Lasry, and Steph Curry.

TGL, and its parent company TMRW Sports (co-founded by Woods and McIlroy, and ex-NBC Sports executive Mike McCarley), is looking to bring team golf into the spotlight at a moment when the sport is undergoing major changes, following a proposed agreement between Saudi-backed LIV Golf, and the PGA Tour.

The league, which is just getting started, signed a multi-year media rights agreement with ESPN in early December. A preview match will be broadcast on ABC on 30th Dec. followed by the first match on Jan. 9.

McCarley said: "I'd compare the Fanatics relationship to how ESPN helps us reach sports enthusiasts." "Fanatics, is where sports fanatics go to make purchase decisions regarding their fandom - just as ESPN is the first place sports fans turn to when they want sports and sports content."

The TGL event, which is a partnership between the PGA Tour and the TGL, will be held on a specially-built course located in Palm Beach County in Florida. It will feature some of the top golfers from around the world competing in a team format.

The first match will be live-broadcast and there will be a live audience on the field.

TGL's first season, which begins in January, will feature 24 PGA Tour stars who have won 223 PGA Tour victories between them.

McCarley confirmed that Woods expects to play in the first league. Woods, 47, has suffered from various injuries ever since his car accident in 2021.

McCarley said to CNBC that "all indications indicate that he is on the mend, and that he will be able to bounce right back to the form we know and love."