BBC Apologizes, Reinstates Gary Lineker After ‘Match of the Day’ Controversy

The popular broadcaster was removed from the network’s Premier League coverage over the weekend for criticizing the government’s immigration policies.

Former soccer star Gary Lineker will return to hosting the BBC Sport’s flagship television program Match of the Day after being suspended over the weekend for criticizing the government’s immigration policies. 

The BBC formally apologized and promised to review its social media guidelines after multiple analysts and pundits refused to participate in Match of the Day out of solidarity with Lineker in a story that dominated the headlines in the U.K. 

“After a surreal few days, I’m delighted that we have navigated a way through this,” Lineker tweeted. “I want to thank you all for the incredible support, particularly my colleagues at BBC Sport, for the remarkable show of solidarity. Football is a team game but their backing was overwhelming.

“… A final thought: however difficult the last few days have been, it simply doesn’t compare to having to flee your home from persecution or war to seek refuge in a land far away.”

The network previously had said that Lineker, who has hosted the weekend highlights show since 1999, had broken its rules of impartiality by tweeting that Great Britain home secretary Suella Braverman’s stance on immigration mirrored the rhetoric used in 1930s Germany. 

There is no huge influx. We take far fewer refugees than other major European countries. This is just an immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s, and I’m out of order?

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) March 7, 2023

But after public and internal backlash at the BBC, including news that BBC chairman Richard Sharp had helped secure a loan for former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the company announced that Lineker will be back on air this weekend.

“Everyone recognizes this has been a difficult period for staff, contributors, presenters and, most importantly, our audiences,” BBC director general Tim Davie said in a statement. “I apologize for this. … Gary is a valued part of the BBC and I know how much the BBC means to Gary, and I look forward to him presenting our coverage this coming weekend.”