BBC Sport lead presenter Mark Chapman could not resist a playful dig at his predecessor Gary Lineker during the broadcaster's coverage of England's World Cup semi-final against Argentina, before urging viewers not to 'pile on'. The quip came while a graphic of Jude Bellingham's tournament statistics was shown, which featured the former England captain prominently.
Pundit Micah Richards expressed his displeasure at seeing Lineker's name on the graphic, saying: "One thing I don't like on that list, another graphic that's got Gary Lineker on there. He's just text me now, he's dropping down the table, thank god for that." Chapman jokingly responded: "Gary, Gary who?" before quickly correcting himself: "Joke, joke, joke, before everyone piles on. Goodness me."
Lineker had been due to lead the BBC's coverage in North America but left at the end of the last Premier League season amid pressure following his social media activity. Chapman, along with Gabby Logan and Kelly Cates, has fronted the BBC's World Cup coverage, initially from Salford before moving to Atlanta for the semi-final.
The graphic showed Bellingham's seven goals inside the penalty area, covering 9.4 metres in the process, with only Rudi Voller, Lineker, Gerd Muller and Miroslav Klose covering less distance for their return. Bellingham has been a key figure for England, sitting one goal behind captain Harry Kane in the Golden Boot race after back-to-back braces against Mexico and Norway.
Lineker, 65, has since joined forces with ITV, where he is set to front game show The Box in autumn 2026. He also featured in ITV's World Cup coverage earlier in the tournament, delivering a short-lived presenting stint before being interrupted by Laura Woods. Lineker had begun presenting as he did for Match of the Day for 26 years, but Woods quickly took over.
In another incident, Lineker gate-crashed the BBC's post-match reaction show after England's 2-1 win over Norway, interrupting Richards' analysis to claim Djed Spence should have been awarded a penalty. The Tottenham defender had won a spot-kick, but referee Clement Turpin overturned the decision after a pitchside monitor review found Spence had initiated the contact.
