Gary Lineker To Step Back From Presenting Match of the Day
10 Mar 2023
Gary Lineker will be stepping back from presenting Match of the Day, the BBC has announced.
The 62 year-old-presenter will be barred from hosting the popular football highlights show until an agreement is reached on his social media use.
The BBC claims Lineker’s “recent social media activity to be a breach of our guidelines” and that he should “keep well away from taking sides on party political issues or political controversies”.
The former England striker drew the ire of conservative politicians by comparing the language used to launch a new government asylum policy with 1930s Germany.
Due to his role as a freelance broadcaster for BBC sport, Lineker is normally not required to adhere to the same regulations on impartiality.
A BBC spokesperson said the corporation has been in “extensive discussions with Gary and his team in recent days”.
“We have said that we consider his recent social media activity to be a breach of our guidelines,”
”The BBC has decided that he will step back from presenting Match of the Day until we’ve got an agreed and clear position on his use of social media”.
“When it comes to leading our football and sports coverage, Gary is second to none. We have never said that Gary should be an opinion free zone, or that he can’t have a view on issues that matter to him, but we have said that he should keep well away from taking sides on party political issues or political controversies”.