Gary Lineker apologised to ITV presenter Laura Woods after inadvertently commandeering the opening of ITV's World Cup coverage for the match between Germany and Ivory Coast. The incident marked Lineker's return to television following his departure from the BBC last year, where he had fronted Match of the Day for over two decades.
Lineker's Return to the Screen
Lineker appeared alongside Ian Wright, Gary Neville, and Duncan Ferguson in ITV's New York studio. As the camera focused on the former England striker, he said: "Thank you for joining us on ITV for this one, another day, another game, another channel..." before Woods interjected: "Woah, woah, woah Gary that's my job." Lineker quickly apologised: "Sorry, sorry, old habits Laura, old habits," referencing his BBC presenting days. The exchange was pre-planned, and Woods resumed her role as main presenter.
Planned Banter and New Show
Woods then introduced Lineker as ITV's "very special guest" and England's joint top goalscorer with Harry Kane. She welcomed him to the ITV family and teased his new show. Lineker joked about Kane equalling his England goal record, saying: "Well, a little bit (angry), I'm not a violent man but I did kick the door down. I was genuinely pleased, it has taken him an extra World Cup and a lot of penalties compared to mine but we'll give him that." He added: "In all seriousness, Harry is a better nine than what I was, Harry does it all, I think he's our best ever number nine."
Brief Involvement and BBC Departure
Lineker's role was limited to the opening segment; Ferguson, Wright, and Neville continued as main analysts. He had originally been due to present the World Cup for the BBC, but his contract ended after the 2024–25 season following a dispute over social media posts. Lineker apologised for sharing a post containing an antisemitic trope, insisting it was unintentional. He now hosts The Rest is Football podcast from New York.
Criticism of BBC's World Cup Coverage
Lineker expressed surprise that the BBC did not bring their team to the United States for the tournament. "I am very surprised the Beeb are not coming. It doesn't make sense to me. I understand that whatever they do they get criticised because that is the nature of the BBC. But I must say this World Cup is the biggest deal over the next five or six weeks. It will probably get the vast majority of the most watched television programmes of the year." He noted that remote presenting is "soulless," adding: "I have done many shows when we have not been able to go to tournaments and you are in a green box. Even if it looks like you are not at home – you are. And it's soulless."
