August 7 – Controversial former BBC Match-of-the-Day presenter Gary Lineker is set for a return to the screen – on ITV.
According to reports, the former captain of England will be fronting a new gameshow called The Box, which will entail celebrities being put in boxes and given challenges.
Lineker, who was the highest-paid on-air talent for the BBC, was axed in May for amplifying online material with antisemitic connotations.
A source told The Sun: “The Box is massive in Norway, and the rights were quickly sold to Denmark and now the UK. ITV are really excited about it and believe they have finally found a worthy successor to Saturday Night Takeaway.
“They have long been sniffing around Gary and just needed to find the right format for him. They’re confident they’ve found that now, and the BBC’s loss is their gain.”
Lineker had been on the BBC for 30 years and he was widely expected to host their 2026 World Cup coverage even after it was announced that he would step away from MOTD hosting duties.
Never shy about commenting on world views, Lineker found himself a target of rightwing figures over his social media feed and was forced to apologise after it emerged he had reposted a pro-Palestine video on Instagram that criticised Zionism and included an illustration of a rat.
After leaving the corporation, Lineker said the BBC should “hold its head in shame” over its failure to show a documentary about the plight of medics in Gaza and people at “the very top of the BBC” had been failing over the conflict.