In his first interview since leaving the popular football show, Match Of The Day (MOTD), Gary Lineker has criticized the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for losing its impartiality. This comes after an incident where he shared a controversial social media post about Zionism, which led to his ousting from the show.
Lineker was removed from his position on MOTD following criticism over a social media post about Zionism. He later apologized for this action, acknowledging that it gave people ammunition against him. However, he expressed disappointment with how the BBC handled his exit.
Gary Lineker, Former BBC pundit, said:
“The impartiality issue has become a massive problem that I think they’ve probably created themselves by the rules that have been set within the business. I understand in your news and current affairs they have to be generally impartial but, I mean, it is hot today right? I think we can all say that we don’t need someone to come in to tell us it’s actually not hot.
“We just need to know the truth. I think they’ve lost their way a little bit with that and there’s a degree of impartiality at the very top of the BBC. There are thousands of amazing people at the BBC but it’s not reflected at the top. They’ve tried themselves up in knots with it.”
During a talk at Glastonbury festival, Lineker revealed that the Corporation had announced his departure before informing him of their decision. He had initially planned to leave MOTD after this summer’s World Cup but ended up hosting his last episode on June 26th.
Colleagues show solidarity
Lineker also shared details of a group chat with fellow sports pundits Ian Wright and Alan Shearer during this period. Upon expressing concerns that he might be taken off air, Wright immediately responded by saying he would leave if such an action was taken against Lineker.
Despite these circumstances leading to an earlier than planned exit from MOTD, Lineker maintains no hard feelings towards the BBC stating: “I love the BBC. I always will and I’m not bitter or twisted about anything that happened.”
Using platforms for beliefs
The former England striker further emphasized on using one's platform to push beliefs they consider right. His statement came in light of being ousted due to sharing personal views on social media platforms.
Gary Lineker added:
“I just thought what’s the point of having a big platform if you don’t use it to kind of push beliefs that you believe to be right.”
In addition to his comments about the BBC and his departure from MOTD, Lineker also expressed support for political hip hop trio Kneecap during his talk at Glastonbury. He ended his speech with a call to action: “Free Palestine.” While Gary Lineker's exit from MOTD was marred by controversy, he remains steadfast in expressing his beliefs and using his platform for causes he supports. Despite the circumstances of his departure, he maintains a positive outlook towards the BBC and continues to be an influential figure in sports broadcasting.
