Lineker says emotional farewell on final Match of the Day

Gary Lineker held backmost tears arsenic helium signed disconnected from his last variation of Match of the Day aft 26 years successful the blistery spot and officially near the BBC.

The big announced successful November that helium would permission the shot amusement astatine the extremity of the Premier League season, which concluded connected Sunday.

He had been owed to stay with the BBC to beforehand sum of the men's FA Cup and the World Cup, but has present near the corp wholly aft apologising for sharing an antisemitic societal media post.

On his swansong connected Sunday, Lineker seemingly made a motion to the controversy, opening the amusement by telling viewers "it wasn't meant to extremity this way" - earlier going connected to crook the enactment into a notation to the last time of the season.

At the extremity of the programme, Lineker was presented with a commemorative headdress and aureate footwear by pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards, who were alongside him.

"It's been an implicit privilege to person hosted Match of the Day for a 4th of a century. It's been utterly joyous," helium said.

Speaking straight into the camera to viewers astatine home, helium added: "And my last convey you goes to each of you.

"Thank you for watching, convey you for each your emotion and enactment implicit the years.

"It's been truthful special, and I'm atrocious that your squad was ever connected last. Time to accidental goodbye."

The erstwhile England guardant replaced Des Lynam arsenic the main presenter of the BBC's flagship shot programme successful 1999, and went connected to go its highest-paid presenter.

He deed the headlines for airing his opinions beyond shot connected societal media, however.

He was suspended successful 2023 for a station astir the then-government's asylum policy, with galore chap BBC Sport presenters and pundits walking retired successful support.

After Lineker was reinstated, the BBC issued caller rules for presenters posting connected societal media.

Earlier this month, Lineker was criticised for sharing a societal media station astir Zionism that included an illustration of a rat, historically utilized arsenic an antisemitic insult.

Lineker apologised, saying helium had not seen the representation and "would ne'er consciously repost thing antisemitic".

However, it was past announced helium would permission the BBC earlier than expected, and that Sunday's amusement would beryllium his last.

In a connection astatine the time, Lineker said shot had been "at the bosom of my life" and that helium cared profoundly astir the crippled and his BBC work, but helium recognised "the mistake and upset that I caused".

"Stepping backmost present feels similar the liable people of action," helium said.

BBC manager wide Tim Davie thanked Lineker for being "a defining dependable successful shot sum for the BBC for implicit 2 decades", and said they had "agreed helium volition measurement backmost from further presenting aft this season".

Lineker's last occurrence successful the presenter's seat connected Sunday saw him interrogation Liverpool manager Arne Slot arsenic they collected the Premier League trophy.

Slot paid tribute, saying: "Thank you for being specified a large presenter of a BBC amusement that I watched galore times erstwhile I lived successful Holland, and present still."

The amusement began with a montage of erstwhile Everton and Spurs striker Lineker's goals and aboriginal looked backmost connected highlights of his clip astatine the helm of Match of the Day.

This included him famously presenting a conception portion wearing lone his Leicester City boxer shorts, arsenic helium had promised, aft his boyhood squad won the Premier League successful 2016.

His longstanding sidekicks Shearer and Richards besides paid tribute, introducing a montage that included testimonies from the likes of Alan Hansen, Ian Wright and Paul Gascgoine arsenic good arsenic the precocious Johan Cruyff, vocalist Andrea Bocelli and Lineker's sons.

"You won't judge it but you volition beryllium missed," offered Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.

"You've been large to maine and you've been unbelievable to Match of the Day," added Shearer.

In January, it was revealed that Kelly Cates, Mark Chapman and Gabby Logan would jointly instrumentality implicit Match of the Day presenting responsibilities from the commencement of the 2025-26 season.

"I'd similar to privation Gabby, Mark and Kelly each the precise champion erstwhile they beryllium successful this chair," Lineker said.

"The programme is successful the champion of hands."