Revealed – six of the top-seven favourites to exchange Gary Lineker on Match of the Day are girls as BBC seems to be to reboot the flagship present: Former England ace Alex Scott among the many front-runners… and there are some VERY leftfield choices

The BBC are plotting a major shake-up at Match of the Day after Gary Lineker leaves at the end of the season, insiders claimed last night.

Lineker, who took over presenting duties on the flagship BBC show from Des Lynam in 1999, is finally set to bring the curtain down after 26 years, paving the way for a brand new host.

The 63-year-old broadcaster is also set to leave the BBC entirely after the 2026 World Cup in America, Mexico, and Canada.

Lineker is the BBC’s highest-paid presenter with a salary of around £1.35million but it’s understood executives want to move the show in a fresh direction.

In fact, six of the top-seven favourites to replace Lineker are female presenters, with former Lioness Alex Scott among the front-runners.

Scott, who racked up 140 appearances for England and represented Great Britain at the London 2012 Olympics, is usually the go-to when Lineker is away. 

She has experience in presenting the Saturday night show and is a regular at live games, including at the Euros, FA Cup and WSL.

But the 40-year-old presenter’s future has been thrown into doubt in recent weeks, with sources claiming she was ‘deeply hurt’ by a ‘lack of support’ surrounding Football Focus’ low ratings.

The Sun reported last month that Scott may be ‘considering other offers’, including a move to America with her pop star girlfriend Jess Glynne as her BBC contract is up for renewal next year. 

If Scott does move away, one presenter who could fill the MOTD hole is former Olympian and BBC stalwart Gabby Logan.

In fact, the 51-year-old (4/1) is second favourite only to MOTD2 host Mark Chapman (6/4) with Ladbrokes. 

The Sun reports that the Beeb are toying with the idea of introducing a series of presenters with Chapman, 51, one of the anchors likely to be rotated. 

Jermaine Jenas was long considered to be the man who would take over Lineker, but he is now out of the running after being sacked over his sexting scandal.

The former Tottenham star admitted to sending ‘inappropriate messages’ to female colleagues, later insisting that ‘nothing physical’ happened but that he had ‘cheated’ on his wife Ellie, with whom he has three children. 

Sky Sports host Kelly Cates, whose father is Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish, is also being tipped as Lineker’s successor. 

Cates joined Sky Sports in 1998 as a regular presenter but suddenly left in 2006.

In August 2016, she returned to the channel, where she now covers the Premier League’s biggest games in the studio alongside the likes of Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Jamie Carragher. 

Cates has rocketed up to third-favourite at 5/1 ahead of Football Focus anchor Scott and Eilidh Barbour on 6/1.

Barbour fronts Sky Sports’ coverage of the Scottish Premiership and fronts the BBC’s golf coverage.

In 2018, she also joined the presenting team for MOTD 2, standing in for regular host Chapman. Meanwhile, she has also covered the Women’s World Cup for the BBC and the first-ever Premier League game on Amazon Prime Video. 

Kelly Somers (8/1), Laura Woods (10/1), Dan Walker (12/1), Micah Richards (12/1), and Manish Bhasin (12/1) all have extensive experience and follow up behind them.

While Somers, Woods, Walker, and Bhasin come from presenting backgrounds, Richards has taken the punditry route after his career in football which saw him play for Manchester City and England. 

He is on a regular pundit on Match of the Day and Sky Sports’ Premier League coverage, and is part of the trio on Lineker’s The Rest is Football podcast alongside Alan Shearer.

However, Shearer is forced to settle for odds of 25/1 to take over the hot seat. 

A name jumps out, level with Richards and others on 12/1, that few would have ever seen coming: history boffin Dan Jones.

Cambridge graduate Jones, known for his books and TV series mostly on English history such as ‘Britain’s Bloodiest Dynasty’, used to write columns about sport for the London Evening Standard. 

However, that gig ended in 2019 and it is safe to say that he seems to be a far-fetched candidate considering his focus on other areas. 

Lineker’s exit will close a long – and controversial – chapter for one of the nation’s most iconic shows. The BBC’s director of sport, Alex Kay-Jelski, is ‘not exactly close’ with Lineker and is keen to slash spending and give the show a facelift, a source told The Sun. The decision to part ways with him comes after six weeks of talks.

Lineker’s time as the face of Match of the Day has been divisive at times, with the presenter temporarily suspended last year for criticising the government’s asylum policy in a controversially worded tweet.

‘Broadcaster Gary Lineker is to step down as host of flagship football programme Match of the Day at the end of this season, BBC News understands,’ the BBC wrote on Monday evening.

He returned soon after following a walk-out by his MOTD colleagues who showed solidarity with the former England striker, and the row even prompted the Beeb to overhaul and draw up a new set of guidelines for its presenters and their social media use. It has been hard for the BBC to keep a handle on him when he presents his popular podcast, The Rest Is Football, alongside Micah Richards and Alan Shearer.

During Euro 2024 he branded England’s performance against Denmark as ‘s***’, which prompted a retaliation from Harry Kane, who hit out at attacks from pundits who knew what it is like to ‘wear the shirt’.

That shock jock tone landed him in hot water and stands in stark contrast to the more composed, cerebral style that Match of the Day upholds.

His contract with the BBC finishes at the end of this season but he has been given an 18-month extension. However, that will not include Match of the Day anchoring duties.

In October, Mail Sport revealed an email purportedly from the BBC’s director of sport, Kay-Jelski, which featured a statement announcing his imminent departure from the show.

That email, which suggested a show earlier this season would be his last – which has not been the case – also included comments from director general Tim Davie, who hailed an ‘incredible’ stint and described Lineker as a ‘world class presenter’.

A source told The Sun: ‘Gary absolutely adores Match of the Day, and has been incredibly happy at the BBC. But he has been at the helm since 1999, and by the time he leaves, he will have been at the Beeb for 30 years.

‘It’s one of the industry’s worst kept secrets that the new BBC Director of Sport Alex Kay-Jelski and Gary aren’t exactly close. The former is very keen to make his mark by bringing in new faces, and slashing wage bills.

‘Negotiations have been ongoing for the past six weeks and finally a deal has been struck that everyone is pleased with.

‘Gary will be 65 when he leaves; frankly, he isn’t getting younger. and just feels the time is right to focus solely on his mogul interests outside the BBC – namely his Goalhanger podcasting business, which is becoming huge Stateside. BBC execs, meanwhile, will be giving Match of the Day a reboot to keep it fresh in the wake of such a huge departure.’