Gary Lineker says BBC didn’t have ‘great desire’ to renew his contract

Ex-footballer will leave the corporation after hosting its 2026 World Cup coverage

Gary Lineker has opened up about his decision to leave the BBC, where he has been the highest paid presenter for seven consecutive years with a current salary of £1.35m.

The 64-year-old, who has presented the flagship football highlights show Match of the Day since 1999, will depart the broadcaster after fronting its coverage of the 2026 World Cup.

When Lineker announced his exit last November, it was reported that he was open to staying on at MOTD but was not offered a new deal for the show.

Speaking in a new interview with The Times, Linker said of leaving the BBC: “I think I’m a better presenter now than I’ve ever been. I know everything that can go wrong, and everything that can go right. Which is a good time to go.”

When challenged that his prime actually sounds like a bad time to quit, the presenter admitted: “There wasn’t a great desire to give me another three-year contract.”

The Independent has contacted the BBC for comment.

Last month, Lineker revealed in an interview with the BBC's Amol Rajan that he had “always wanted one more contract” from the BBC.

Gary Lineker has said there ‘wasn’t a great desire’ to give him another three-year BBC contract (The FA via Getty Images)

“It was their preference that I didn’t do Match Of The Day for one more year so they could bring in new people, so it’s slightly unusual that I would do the FA Cup and the World Cup, but, to be honest, it’s a scenario that suits me perfectly,” he said.

He will host BBC Sport’s coverage of the FA Cup in the 2025-26 season, continuing with the MOTD Top Ten podcast and The Rest Is Football podcast on BBC Sounds until he leaves the corporation.

His decision to leave the BBC came after he faced a furore in 2023 for comparing the then British government’s asylum policy with 1930s Germany on X/Twitter.

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Lineker was briefly taken off air by the BBC, due to the company’s policy of impartiality. Other sports journalists and presenters walked out in solidarity, before he returned to fronting MOTD.

Lineker will leave the corporation after hosting its 2026 World Cup coverage (PA Archive)

Elsewhere in The Times interview, Lineker revealed he had been approached to be a contestant on the celebrity edition of the reality show Big Brother upon his exit announcement from the BBC.

The inquiry was dealt with by Lineker’s agent, who told the show’s producers he would consider it for a fee of £100m.

“They said it was a little over their budget,” Lineker revealed. “Actually I wouldn’t have done it for £100m either.”

The former footballer previously played for Leicester City, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur, FC Barcelona, and Nagoya Grampus.