Gary Lineker has accused the BBC of "moving the goalposts" regarding what he could and could not say on social media, and admitted he could have simply "shut up" for a quiet life. The former Match of the Day presenter resigned from his position in May 2025 after being accused of sharing an antisemitic post on X.
Lineker's apology and resignation
Lineker reposted a video from the group Palestine Lobby, which criticised Israel's actions in Gaza, but included a cartoon of a rat, a symbol which has historically been considered antisemitic. When he announced his exit from the BBC, he apologised for the post by writing: "I recognise the error and upset that I caused, and reiterate how sorry I am. Stepping back now feels like the responsible course of action."
On Tuesday (August 25), the 65-year-old The Rest Is Football star appeared at the Edinburgh TV Festival, where he reflected on his career, including his exit from the BBC, where he had fronted Match of the Day from 1999 until 2025.
Goalposts 'shifted'
Adam Hawkins, the director of documentary series at Netflix and advisory chair for the festival, raised the topic of Lineker's suspension and BBC departure, questioning why he feels the need to engage publicly with political matters. Lineker described how the impartiality goalposts at the BBC had "shifted", noting: "For the first few years of Twitter, I posted about whether it's refugees or some kind of humanitarian issues around the world, and then I think it was around 2019, something like that, the BBC moves the goalposts, and they said, from now on, it applies to everyone."
The ex-Barcelona forward then told Hawkins that he remembered speaking to the director-general, informing him that he had no intention of altering the way he behaved online. He said: "I still want to speak up if I want. I said I'll always be cautious, and it'll be about humanitarian issues. if I wanted a quiet an easy life I could have just shut up, but I'm an idiot."
Humanitarian triggers
He also added: "I don't think it's politics, really. I'm interested in politics, I'm not interested in being in politics. I don't think I speak much about politics, although politics is involved in everything that I speak about. I think ultimately you need to live with yourself."
"If I see things that upset me in humanitarian terms, then I find it quite upsetting, and it triggers me to use a platform that I would never have had before. People can disagree and they do and that's absolutely fine."
The father-of-four pointed to the moment when then-director-general Tim Davie overhauled the BBC's impartiality rules back in October 2020. In an update posted by the broadcaster on its website, it stated: "The new social media guidance applies to everyone working at the BBC whether they are using social media professionally or personally, with clear steps to follow to maintain standards and integrity."
It further noted: "If your work requires you to maintain your impartiality, don't express a personal opinion on matters of public policy, politics, or 'controversial subjects'."
