Former Match of the Day presenter will appear on ITV’s World Cup broadcast after leaving BBC
Gary Lineker to make surprise appearance on ITV’s World Cup coverage (Image: Jason Alden/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Gary Lineker is reportedly set to appear as a commentator on ITV during this weekend’s World Cup. The former Match of the Day presenter is in New York and presents daily episodes of Rest is Football on Netflix.
However, The Independent reports that he is set to appear on ITV as a pundit for Saturday night’s Group E match between Germany and Ivory Coast. The move sees him become a direct rival to the BBC, just over a year after leaving his former employer.
After stepping down as host of Match of the Day, his original plan was to remain with the BBC to cover the World Cup. However, the decision to completely sever ties with the broadcaster was announced in May last year.
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The move comes after the BBC was criticized for basing its World Cup studio in Salford, England, rather than in the United States, where the tournament will be held. Meanwhile, ITV broadcasts from a rooftop studio with the impressive New York skyline in the background.
Back in April, Mr Lineker appeared to be aiming to mock the BBC from across the studio. “I was originally going to be on the BBC this summer, but that didn’t happen and I ended up in a green box in Salford and now I’m going to be in New York City overlooking Times Square with a lot of great guests,” he said.
This received a response from Alex Kagelski, the BBC’s sports director. “This is not a green box in Salford. It’s a beautiful, state-of-the-art studio. Nobody has seen it before. It’s perfectly safe to think that what has always been there is what will be. And I’m really proud of it.”
Gary Lineker is reportedly set to appear as a pundit on ITV at this year’s World Cup. (Image: Kate Green/Getty Images for Netflix)
“I don’t think the actual end product that people are getting in their homes is that different,” Kay Jelski added. “If these people were sitting in a different place, would your perspective change much?
“If I were to stand here and say, ‘Everything will be done in a studio in Dallas,’ you would naturally say to me, ‘How can you justify that expense?’
Lineker earlier this week praised ITV for not using the controversial three-minute hydration break in the first half of matches as an advertising break, as some broadcasters have done. “Actually, I’d like to give ITV a pat on the back here because I think they could have taken that option, but I don’t know, they didn’t,” he said on The Rest Is Football.
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“So, Mr. ITV, I’m glad you didn’t do that, because I’m sure you’d be tempted. Maybe the corporate world we live in, football now, maybe our sport is becoming Americanized?”
Germany and Ivory Coast were both winners in the opening games of Group E. Germany defeated Curaçao 7-1, and Ivory Coast scored late to beat Ecuador 1-0.
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