Gary Lineker will reportedly return to the BBC next weekend after a deal was struck to get him back on air.
Gary Lineker will reportedly be back on the BBC next weekend
The footballer-turned-TV host was asked to step back from presenting flagship football show 'Match of the Day' last week in a row over impartiality after he tweeted criticism of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s policy on refugees - prompting a mass walk out of BBC pundits and presenters who stood by him - but now a new report suggests he will be back to present the BBC's coverage of next weekend's FC Cup fixtures.
A source told The Sun newspaper: "Gary will be back to host the BBC's FA Cup coverage. A deal has been struck ... the details of the deal are unclear at this stage."
The row kicked off when Lineker took to Twitter to comment on video of Home Secretary Suella Braverman in which she presented a plan to detain migrants who crossed the Channel in small boats or remove them to either their country of origin or a safe third state within 28 days.
Lineker likened the language used by ministers to "that used by Germany in the 30s" and was later asked to step aside from hosting 'Match of the Day' for seemingly breaching the organisation's rules on impartiality.
As a result, a number of his colleagues, including Ian Wright, Alan Shearer, Micah Richards, Alex Scott and Jermaine Jenas all said they would not appear on the BBC either in a mark of solidarity.
BBC bosses decided to air the programme as a highlights show without any presenters or commentary.
A spokesperson said in a statement: "Some of our pundits have said that they don't wish to appear on the programme while we seek to resolve the situation with Gary. "We understand their position and we have decided that the programme will focus on match action without studio presentation or punditry."
As well as the presenters and pundits ruling themselves out of the show, commentators Steve Wilson, Conor McNamara, Robyn Cowen and Steven Wyeth shared a joint statement online, saying they did not feel "it would be appropriate to take part in the programme". They added: "As commentators on MOTD, we have decided to step down from (Saturday's) broadcast. "We are comforted that football fans who want to watch their teams should still be able to do so, as management can use World Feed commentary if they wish. "However, in the circumstances, we do not feel it would be appropriate to take part in the programme."
As well as having 'Match of the Day' cut back, bosses were forced to scrap planned episodes of 'Football Focus' and 'Final Score' while BBC Radio 5Live's football coverage over the weekend was also axed as presenters including Mark Chapman declined to take part.
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