Gary Lineker signed off from Match of the Day and the BBC on Sunday amid tears and celebrations. There were warm tributes from colleagues, friends and his beloved sons.
The 64-year-old was taken down memory lane after 26 years of hosting the BBC’s top sports programme as he wryly noted: “Rather like my football career, everyone else did the hard work and I got the plaudits”, he said. “It’s been utterly joyous.”
After an initial stint as a pundit, Lineker’s presenting debut came in August 1999. Twenty-six years on saw his final analysis in the company of Alan Shearer and Micah Richards.
In 2015 he agreed to present MOTD in “just my undies” if his team, Leicester City, won the Premier League. The Foxes duly delivered the mother of all stories, and Lineker stood in massive white shorts the next season for its opener.
He used Twitter to articulate his support for refugees brought press attacks and unwanted attention from strangers. In 2023, criticism of asylum systerm in the UK under the Tory government led to debates over impartiality at the Beeb and a brief suspension, only for Lineker’s punditry peers to walk out in solidarity.
Lineker’s decision to repost content relating to the Gaza conflict earlier this month, which featured an antisemitic symbol firmly ended plans for an extended farewell at the men’s World Cup next summer.
“It wasn’t meant to end this way,” was how Lineker opened his final bow, before the customary joke. “With the title race over, the Champions League was all we had left to talk about,” said the departing host Lineker. What a finish!
