Podcasts, ITV, Fox? Gary Lineker transfer speculation swirls after BBC exit

Irish Times

23-05-2025

It is a scenario straight from the footballing world. A public falling out, leading to a star player becoming a free agent. From the moment
Gary Lineker
's hastened departure from the BBC was announced this week, after he apologised for amplifying a social media post with anti-Semitic connotations, speculation began over his next move. In truth, however, the 64-year-old had already been thinking about his plans beyond the broadcaster.
This week, industry insiders have been wondering whether the BBC's highest-paid presenter could be the subject of an audacious bid by a rival or be sought after by an overseas network. But Lineker could be working closely with another broadcaster as soon as this summer.
Having navigated one transformation, from goal poacher to trusted anchor, the presenter is now free to complete another – from a face of the established media to a streamer challenging the old guard.
In a sign he is ready to embrace the role of media disrupter, talks are taking place that could lead to his podcast, The Rest is Football, launching shows featuring match clips of this summer's Club World Cup, whose participants include Manchester City, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. His Goalhanger Productions company is discussing the idea with Dazn, the global rights holder for the tournament, which kicks off next month.
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It is not just his platform of choice that is changing after his BBC departure. While Lineker's on-screen draw has always been a streak of cheekiness, in the podcast he and his regular Match of the Day sparring partners Alan Shearer and Micah Richards take a more irreverent – and sweary – tone. Lineker caused headlines during last year's Euros by describing an England performance as 's**t' in one episode. By this summer, he will be fully unleashed from the BBC's strictures.
The potential deal indicates the ambitions of Lineker and Goalhanger Productions, the extraordinarily successful podcast company he cofounded, which oversees titles including The Rest is History and The Rest is Politics. Cracking the US, where the Club World Cup is taking place, is a priority. Lineker has previously made clear that podcasting is where he sees his post-BBC future.
It also tees up next year's World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico. While he is no longer taking on presenting duties for the BBC, there is obvious scope for The Rest is Football live-streams to conduct instant post-match analysis.
Former Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker outside his home in London. Photograph: Ben Whitley/PA Wire
'We're keen to take a similar approach to what we did around the [2024] Euros, with The Rest is Football going out more regularly across the tournament,' said a Goalhanger representative. 'We'll certainly be covering the World Cup, though no production plans have been finalised yet.'
Unsurprisingly, Lineker has been cutting back on his commitments this week. He was said to be genuinely devastated by what he admitted was a serious error – reposting a video about Zionism that used a rat emoji, echoing a depiction of Jewish people used in Nazi Germany. He deleted the post and apologised the next day, but anger had already built within the BBC among staff and bosses. With his social media activity having caused repeated heat for the corporation, both sides agreed enough was enough.
Lineker was due to make a starring appearance at a podcast conference in central London on Thursday but pulled out. While he has already had offers of new projects of various kinds, friends said his immediate concerns were to take time out and prepare for an important family wedding. It will not be until the summer that he sits down to think about a firmer, longer-term plan.
But that has not stopped speculation within the TV world about a big-money transfer. Some things can be ruled out. He will not be switching to cookery programmes, a previous offer from the BBC that he found easy to resist.
He would come to any new broadcaster with the baggage of various skirmishes over political impartiality, quite apart from this week's incident. But his status as a trusted screen presence is well established. Match of the Day has performed well under Lineker's reign. While viewer numbers have declined as media habits have changed, its audience share has grown from 20 per cent in 2002 to 29 per cent in 2025, according to the analytics company Digital-i. The show's average audience so far this year has been 2.3 million and it has held pretty steady since the Covid pandemic.
So is there any chance Lineker will be targeted by a traditional BBC rival? The obvious post would be heading ITV's World Cup coverage, but most industry figures who spoke to the Guardian believe that highly unlikely. The channel has invested in Mark Pougatch, its lead football anchor. In practice, parachuting Lineker in would involve putting 'a lot of noses out of joint' at the broadcaster, said one industry old hand, adding: 'There'd be a mutiny.'
Even those who consider it a possibility regard it as unlikely. 'I'd say about a 10 per cent chance,' said one television insider. Another gave it less credence: 'No chance.'
Sky Sports shows the most Premier League games by far, and spends a lot of money for those rights. Industry figures said it ran a tight ship in terms of its team. 'You can almost be a bit too big to fit into another organisation,' said one figure in football broadcasting.
Some have speculated that an overseas broadcaster such as Fox in the US may be a more likely home, where Lineker's social media history would be less of a concern. But those who have worked with him say he enjoyed working for a prominent UK broadcaster. 'Gary likes being with one of the main players,' said one former colleague, adding that the presenter paid close attention to how the BBC rated against ITV during major football tournaments.
The real decision, say some who know him, will come down to how he feels after so many years at the BBC and bruising encounters with the media. 'It's up to him,' said one. 'I'm not sure that he would jump at just anything. He's very close to his boys and that's very important to him. It would have to suit Gary and I think he'll probably take some time out anyway.'
Another former colleague agreed. 'I'm a big fan of Gary, who developed from an average presenter to a star,' they said. 'But he might decide to have a different life.' – Guardian