Two weeks before Bill Belichick’s much-anticipated debut as North Carolina head coach, the program’s general manager, Michael Lombardi, traveled to Saudi Arabia to gauge interest in whether the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) would be interested in investing in Tar Heels football, UNC vice chancellor for communications Dean Stoyer confirmed to The Athletic.

That visit came “at the invitation of the Saudis,” Stoyer said, and the university was aware of it before Lombardi traveled to Saudi Arabia.

Stoyer, who characterized the visit as an “exploratory fundraising trip,” said neither university nor athletic funds were used to pay for Lombardi’s trip. The Saudi government paid for it, Stoyer said, though it is unclear whether Lombardi also used personal funds.

Lombardi’s trip did not culminate in any sort of agreement between Belichick’s football program and the PIF. It is not clear whether any follow-up meetings or conversations took place.

Lombardi declined to comment.

The trip was first hinted at by Pablo Torre, host of the podcast “Pablo Torre Finds Out,” on the social media platform X Thursday afternoon. The show is part of The Athletic’s podcast network.

Lombardi’s trip is not the first time in recent years that North Carolina has explored alternative revenue streams to subsidize its athletic department. According to public records obtained by The Athletic, athletic director Bubba Cunningham had several meetings in 2023 with private equity firms “regarding all things college athletics, revenue generation, and conference realignment,” according to one email thread. Cunningham and UNC ultimately opted not to move forward with any such negotiations after preliminary discussions.

The PIF has become one of the most powerful players in the global sports market in recent years. It bankrolls the LIV Golf tour, an upstart that once rivaled the PGA Tour that is now in discussions about a merger. It owns a majority stake in Newcastle United in the English Premier League and has stakes in mixed martial arts with the Professional Fighters League (PFL). It has organized Formula 1 events in Saudi Arabia, has multi-year partnership deals with professional tennis circuits and ambitious plans in boxing.

In late September, the video game company Electronic Arts (EA) announced the PIF and two other investors had agreed to a $55 billion purchase of the company. EA, the parent company of EA Sports, recently brought back its popular college football video game in 2024 after an 11-year absence. It quickly became the best-selling sports video game in U.S. history. The Athletic has a commercial partnership with EA Sports.

In August, the PIF declared its global assets to be worth an estimated $913 billion in its 2024 revenue report.

The PIF did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment about the meeting with North Carolina.

Lombardi, who was hired by Belichick last December to piece together the UNC roster, has been criticized for his talent evaluations and roster-building tactics since arriving in Chapel Hill. In a story published by The Athletic earlier this month, agents of players spoke about his inability to properly rate the type of talent needed for Belichick to build a winner in his first season.

The 73-year-old Belichick won six Super Bowls during his 24 seasons as head coach of the New England Patriots, yet his move to UNC and the world of college football was a surprise. Lombardi, who has served in front-office capacities for several NFL teams over his career, said the Tar Heels would be the NFL’s “33rd team” with the NFL’s most accomplished coach leading the way.

So far, UNC football has struggled mightily under Belichick. The Tar Heels are 2-3 and are coming off back-to-back blowout losses to UCF (34-9) and Clemson (38-10). After a second early bye week, UNC plays Friday night at California.

Lombardi’s trip isn’t the first time a college football staffer has ventured to the Middle East in search of tapping into the PIF’s vast financial resources. Last year, former Colorado assistant coach Trevor Reilly detailed to The Athletic his individually funded trip to Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Dubai in attempts to see if the PIF and various other offices of tourism would be interested in investing with the Buffaloes.

— The Athletic’s Dianna Russini contributed to this report.