Gary Lineker speaks out on BBC exit as he explains why he refused to be silenced

Gary Lineker has stated that if he "wanted a quiet and easy life I could have shut up" as he reflected on his past BBC controversies.

The former Match Of The Day presenter stepped down from his role at the broadcaster in May last year following public backlash over sharing his political commentary on social media platforms.

Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival during a session with Adam Hawkins, Netflix’s director of documentary series and the festival’s advisory chair, Lineker discussed using his prominence to "address things that upset me".

The 65-year-old said: "I don’t really speak much about politics, but politics is involved in everything that I speak about.

"Ultimately you need to live with yourself, and if I see things that upset me in humanitarian terms and I find it quite upsetting, it triggers me to use a platform I would have never had before.

"People can disagree and they do and that’s absolutely fine."

The former footballer stressed that with the BBC "it’s important to tell the whole story".

Explaining how things changed with the broadcaster over time, Lineker said: “At the start with the BBC, for 20 years, there was never a question of impartiality applying to those who were outside news and current affairs.

“I would post refugees and humanitarian issues, but then in 2019 the BBC moved the goalpost and said it applied to everyone and I said it wasn’t in my contract.

“I remember speaking with the director-general and said I would change and I would speak up if I wanted.

“I said I would be cautious and it would be about humanitarian issues and I carried on.

“If I wanted a quiet and easy life I could have just shut up… but I’m an idiot.”

Discussing his present online activity, Lineker noted: "You won’t see me being abusive to anyone on socials – I don’t bother with it now though.

"I actually don’t know how to do a post on Instagram anymore – I have no idea how to do it after they changed it and I came off X a few years ago after it became a hateful, spiteful place."

He recalled that joining X was originally a "bit of fun" suited to his "stupid dad jokes", but described the platform as "awful" after Elon Musk took control.

"I still have it and sometimes use it, but by and large it’s largely Instagram now," he said.

Lineker previously anchored the BBC’s premier football programme Match Of The Day, leaving in May 2025 after a controversy surrounding an Instagram post concerning Zionism, which contained an image of a rat – historically an antisemitic insult.

The sports broadcaster apologised for the upload, clarifying that he had not noticed the rat visual and adding that he did not think "anyone actually believes I would’ve posted that".

Lineker stood as the BBC’s highest-paid presenter, having fronted Match Of The Day since 1999 alongside leading major sports coverage including the 2012 London Olympics.