Gary Lineker 'QUITS the BBC after explosive anti-Semitic rat post row - and will not front the corporation's 2026 World Cup coverage': Divisive ex-England man will be off screens in DAYS
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Gary Lineker is set to set to step down from the BBC tomorrow over antisemitism allegations and will not helm the broadcaster's coverage of the 2026 World Cup.
An announcement is expected on Monday, with speculation mounting that the long-standing sports broadcaster's final job for the network will be next weekend's Match of the Day.
The ex-Tottenham and Barcelona star is set to leave by mutual agreement after 26 years in the role, The Sun reported.
Lineker was widely condemned for his now-deleted Instagram video story that prompted backlash from sections of the Jewish community.
The post featured a pro-Palestine video featuring an anti-Jewish rat slur, with the Match of the Day presenter insisting he would 'never knowingly share anything anti-Semitic'.
Lineker, 64, apologised unreservedly for the 'mistake' saying 'that image does not reflect my views'.
The image of rats and vermin are considered provocative since they were widely used as propaganda against Jews in 1930s Nazi Germany.
The former England striker was already set to leave his role as presenter of Match of the Day at the end of the season, but will now no longer host the corporation's coverage of the FA Cup in 2025-26 and the World Cup in 2026.
BBC bosses are believed to have considered Lineker's position untenable.
On Saturday afternoon, he took to TV screens across the country again to front coverage of the FA Cup final between Manchester City and Crystal Palace from Wembley alongside the likes of Wayne Rooney.
Lineker is listed by the BBC as their highest-paid presenter, receiving £1.4million from the BBC last year.
He shared the controversial post, originally uploaded by another account, as it featured a critique of Zionism - a movement for the creation and protection of a Jewish homeland in what is now Israel.
The BBC stalwart has previously been vocal with his views on the Israeli invasion of Gaza following the October 7 attacks - among other issues - but is not thought to have ever publicly apologised for content he has shared.
Mr Lineker refused to say sorry in 2023 for comparing the then Tory government's rhetoric over its immigration policy to that of Nazi Germany.
The remark triggered a BBC suspension but this was lifted when colleagues walked out in support of the presenter.
The BBC's social media rules were then rewritten to say presenters of flagship programmes outside news and current affairs - including Match of the Day - have 'a particular responsibility to respect the BBC's impartiality, because of their profile on the BBC'.
Lineker, however, remained unrepentant about the series of incendiary tweets from 2023 that led to his suspension.
In an interview published on BBC2 last month, he said: 'I don't regret saying them publicly, because I was right - what I said, it was accurate.
'Why shouldn't I have an opinion on things? I'm a b***dy footballer who's turned into a sports presenter'.
In the same interview with the BBC’s Amol Rajan, he was asked whether it was part of his remit to give a view on Middle East politics.
Lineker said: 'I’m sorry. It’s more important than the BBC. What’s going on there [Gaza] is the mass murder of thousands of children — probably something that we should have a little opinion on.'
But on Wednesday, after outrage at the rat image intensified, the former England captain said: 'On Instagram I reposted material which I have since learned contained offensive references.
'I very much regret these references. I would never knowingly share anything anti-Semitic. It goes against everything I believe in.
'The post was removed as soon as I became aware of the issue.
'Whilst I strongly believe in the importance of speaking out on humanitarian issues, including the tragedy unfolding in Gaza, I also know that how we do so matters.
'I take full responsibility for this mistake. That image does not reflect my views. It was an error on my part for which I apologise unreservedly.'
In an interview with the Telegraph this week, Mr Lineker described what is going on in Gaza as 'beyond depraved.'
He said: 'We still seem to be on the side of the people who are doing this. We’re still supplying arms.
'And you think, "Wow, how?" The vast majority of people see it for what it is now.'
In an interview with the Telegraph this week, Mr Lineker described what is going on in Gaza as 'beyond depraved.'
He said: 'We still seem to be on the side of the people who are doing this. We’re still supplying arms.
'And you think, "Wow, how?" The vast majority of people see it for what it is now.'
On the subject of October 7 he said it was 'inevitable' the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land would 'cause massive problems'.
The 64-year-old added fuel to the fire earlier this week over an unrelated issue - as he appeared to take a swipe at the BBC's director of sport as of last year, Alex Kay-Jelski, saying he 'wants to change Match of the Day a bit'.
He told Telegraph Sport: 'I think [a regime change] has [happened], and that's what I was alluding to [in an earlier interview].
'He has his reasons, he wants to change Match of the Day a bit. Ultimately, I don’t think they will, because I don’t see how you move a highlights show away from being about highlights.
'I think he wants more journalists - he has come from that background. He has got no television experience.'
One BBC staff member, who has since he proved right, claimed the combination of sharing the rat emoji and making the comments about Kay-Jelski could spell the end for Lineker at the BBC.
They said: 'That is being seen as a real dig at the head of sport, which you just don’t do.
'But for it to come so soon after the social media controversy makes it a real problem for him.'
In an interview earlier in the year, Lineker implied that the BBC wanted him to move on from Match of the Day.
He said: 'Well, perhaps they want me to leave. There was the sense of that.'
While the BBC refused to comment on Lineker's implication at the time, they referred to him as a 'world-class presenter' - while adding that Match of the Day 'continually evolves for changing viewing habits'.
Having made his name at Leicester City, where he played between 1978 and 1985, Lineker went on to play for Everton and Spurs before earning a big-money £2.8million move to Barcelona.
Lineker made his England debut in 1984, earning 80 internationals caps and scoring 48 goals over an eight-year international career.
That puts him forth in England's list of all-time record goalscorers, after Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney and Sir Bobby Charlton.
The BBC confirmed in November 2024 that Lineker would be stepping down from Match of the Day at the end of this season after 26 years in the job.
