Gary Lineker left the BBC a year ago and has now set up a new business, with two deals already agreed as his portfolio continues to expand since departing Match of the Day. The former presenter's podcast group, Goalhanger, is launching a venture capital arm to reinvest profits from their success by taking stakes in other media startups, City AM reports.
Lineker co-founded Goalhanger while still at the BBC and continues to hold a 33 per cent stake in the Kennington-based firm, according to company filings. He co-hosts The Rest is Football, which recently sealed a deal with Netflix to host the programme during the World Cup.
Goalhanger, the UK's largest independent podcast group, also produces The Rest is History, The Rest is Entertainment, and The Rest is Money. The new division, Goalhanger Ventures, is designed to invest in "creator-led media businesses" and has already completed its first two deals.
One investment is in Invisible Media, the economics- and business-focused video platform behind YouTube channel The Invisible Hand. Another is a commercial partnership with Backyard Cricket, a cricket content brand founded in Yorkshire. This follows the company's launch of its own startup incubator programme, The Accelerator, in January, which offers mentorship to early-stage digital talent.
Jack Davenport, co-founder alongside Tony Pastor, explained the expansion plans: "Goalhanger Ventures is about giving exceptional creator-led businesses the infrastructure to grow without losing what made them special in the first place. Invisible Media and Backyard Cricket are very different propositions, but they both have that rare combination of editorial clarity, audience trust and genuine momentum. Our role is to help them scale thoughtfully, commercially and creatively, while protecting the independence, personality and quality that their communities already respond to."
Among the directors of Goalhanger's venture unit is Greg Bettinelli, a partner at investment firm The Chernin Group, which backed the podcast business in January, indicating the venture unit may also pursue external investment.
This marks the latest milestone in Goalhanger's ongoing expansion. The company has rocketed in popularity since tapping into shifting media consumption habits during the COVID-19 pandemic with the launch of its now-flagship podcast, The Rest is History. The group has also moved away from an advertising-led model towards paid subscriptions and live events. In January, Goalhanger surpassed 250,000 paid subscribers for the first time, with subscriptions thought to bring in upwards of £15m annually. In 2025 alone, people streamed the firm's content more than 750 million times.
