The temperature of golf's civil war has been turned down, but it's by no means resolved, says McIlroy. Golf's superpowers PGA Tour and LIV Golf, with the European Tour acting as mediator of sorts, are still at loggerheads on how to move forward.
The parties have been at it since 2023, but there are still no signs of any commercial agreements or concessions.
"I just don't see a world where it can happen at this point," said McIlroy ahead of the Dubai Desert Classic this week.
"Just I don't see a world where the two or three sides or whoever it is will give up enough. Like for reunification to happen, every side is going to feel like they will have lost, where you really want every side to feel like they have won.
"I think they are just too far apart for that to happen."
The rift has also spilt over to McIlroy's Ryder Cup teammates Jon Rahm and Ricky Hatton. The pair are currently going through an appeal process after being sanctioned with fines by the European Tour for joining the LIV Golf circuit. They are still allowed into European Tour events while the process plays out.
For McIlroy, the simplest way to prove their commitment to the 2027 Ryder Cup would be to just pay the fines and be done with the fiasco.
"We went really hard on the Americans about being paid to play the Ryder Cup, and we also said that we would pay to play in Ryder Cups," he added.
"There's two guys that can prove it."
Rory McIlroy is set to make a last-minute decision on whether he will defend his Players Championship title at Sawgrass, as a persistent back problem cast doubt over his participation.
Justin Rose has urged Ryder Cup teammate Jon Rahm to settle his differences with the DP World Tour to ensure his eligibility for the iconic team event.
Scottie Scheffler is not worried about the state of his game despite not meeting his incredibly high standards at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Rory McIlroy will tee off alongside Xander Schauffele and Hideki Matsuyama for the first two rounds of his title defence at The Players Championship.
