Gary Lineker’s future at the BBC has been the subject of recent speculation, as the presenter’s contract with the broadcaster ticks down into its final year.
The former England striker has been a fixture on the BBC for more than 25 years, having begun hosting Match of the Day in 1999, with the 63-year-old the lead presenter for the Beeb’s Euro 2024 coverage this summer.
A report emerged earlier this month that Lineker will not be presenting the BBC’s Champions League highlight show which starts in September after the corporation signed a three-year deal to show highlights for the first time.
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And now the Mail claims that Lineker ‘plotted a transfer from the BBC to ITV’, after making overtures to ITV over the past 18 months, only to be turned down by the broadcaster.
The report adds that Lineker’s agent, Jon Holmes, called the claims ‘rubbish’, adding that ITV wanted to hire his client in the past, only for these advances to be turned down.
Lineker found himself at the centre of controversy during Euro 2024, when his criticism of England’s group stage performances on his The Rest is Football podcast made headlines, with Three Lions skipper Harry Kane addressing the row during a press conference.
“I would never want to be disrespectful to any player, especially a player who has worn the shirt and knows what it is like to play for England,” said Kane. “But what ex-players who are pundits now have got to realise it is very hard not to listen to it now, especially for some players who are not used to it or some players who are new to the environment.
“I always feel like they have a responsibility – I know they have got to be honest and give their opinion but also they have a responsibility of being an ex-England player. The bottom line is we haven't won anything as a nation for a long, long time and a lot of these players were part of that as well and they know how tough it is.”
Lineker was also briefly suspended by the BBC last year after taking aim at the then-Conservative government’s use of language around asylum policy on social media, with a host of his Match of the Day colleagues rallying around him and pulling out of that weekend’s broadcast, meaning it was shown with no commentary and no studio analysis.
Lineker’s current BBC contract is worth £1.35 million per year and runs until next summer.
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