<figure id="attachment_3063231" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-3063231" style="width: 1600px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-3063231" src="https://media.freemalaysiatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/8ce8cbe1-gary-lineker-epa-190525.webp" alt="Gary Lineker EPA 190525" width="1600" height="1000" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-3063231" class="wp-caption-text">Gary Lineker was the BBC&#8217;s highest-paid presenter, earning £1.35 million a year. (EPA Images pic)</figcaption></figure>
LONDON: Former England football captain Gary Lineker will leave the BBC at the end of the season, it was confirmed today, days after he shared a social media post that contained antisemitic imagery.
&#8220;Gary Lineker will leave his presenting role following the conclusion of Match of the Day for the 2024/25 season,&#8221; the BBC said in a statement.
&#8220;He will not be part of the BBC&#8217;s coverage of the 2026 World Cup or next season&#8217;s FA Cup coverage.&#8221;
Last week Lineker apologised &#8220;unreservedly&#8221; for sharing an Instagram story about Zionism, which he deleted, and which had featured a picture of a rat, saying: &#8220;I take full responsibility for this mistake. That image does not reflect my views.&#8221;
In a fresh statement today Lineker said: &#8220;Football has been at the heart of my life for as long as I can remember – both on the pitch and in the studio.
&#8220;I care deeply about the game, and about the work I&#8217;ve done with the BBC over many years. As I&#8217;ve said, I would never consciously repost anything antisemitic – it goes against everything I stand for.
&#8220;However, I recognise the error and upset that I caused, and reiterate how sorry I am. Stepping back now feels like the responsible course of action.&#8221;
Tim Davie, BBC director-general, said: &#8220;Gary has acknowledged the mistake he made. Accordingly, we have agreed he will step back from further presenting after this season.&#8221;
Davie described Lineker as a &#8220;defining voice in football coverage for the BBC for over two decades&#8221;.
Lineker, 64, had already planned to end his 26-year stay as host of popular Premier League highlights programme Match of the Day at the end of the season.
However, he had been due to lead the BBC&#8217;s coverage of the 2026 World Cup and FA Cup next season.
Instead, Sunday&#8217;s Match of the Day following the final round of Premier League fixtures will be his final show.
Lineker was the BBC&#8217;s highest-paid presenter, earning £1.35 million a year from the publicly funded broadcaster.
His outspoken views on social media have caused headaches for BBC bosses due to the corporation&#8217;s rules on impartiality.
In March 2023, Lineker was briefly taken off air after comparing the language used to launch a British government asylum policy to the rhetoric of Nazi-era Germany.
Lineker was reinstated just over a week later – after a revolt by several of his colleagues in sympathy with him – but the BBC launched an independent review of its social medial guidelines as a result of the incident.
Witness football history in Malaysia as Manchester United take on the Asean All-Stars – it&#8217;s the clash you can&#8217;t afford to miss. 
Book your seat now at <a style="color: #ff0000;" href="http://myticketempire.com/manumy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">myticketempire.com/manumy</a> before they’re gone!

MatchPoint Times

Gary Lineker to leave BBC after social media ‘error’

The former England football captain had shared a post that contained antisemitic imagery.

Russian ballet patriarch Yuri Grigorovich dies at 98

Nurul Izzah dekati asatizah dalam usaha tangani fitnah terhadap PKR