Alex Scott put on a snowflake-inspired display as it was revealed she is the new favourite for the Match of the Day job amid fears internally the show will lose its traditional format and become Gen Z obsessed and woke.
The footballer turned pundit, 40, was all smiles in an oversized white fur coat as she left Claridge’s and overtook Mark ‘Chappers’ Chapman as Gary Lineker‘s expected replacement.
One source has claimed that the new Match of the Day next season might feature celebs and influencers to capture the attention of more younger people.
BBC insiders are said to be worried that the corporation’s flagship football show will be ‘diminished’ by proposals to put match highlights on iPlayer hours before 10.30pm.
There would also be ‘less emphasis on analysis from people sat in the studio’ with Mr Lineker gone next season because people, especially younger Britons, ‘will just want the goals and highlights’, one source has said.
Alex Scott looked glam as she attended a private dinner party at Claridge’s Hotel as she became favourite to replace Gary Lineker
Mr Lineker, pictured catching a train yesterday, will also step down from Sports Personality of the Year
Mark Chapman has frequently presented the show’s Sunday programme Match of the Day 2, while Kelly Somers is another contender to take over hosting duties from Lineker
Gabby Logan, Eilidh Barbour, Kelly Cates are among those tipped to form part of a revolving cast
It took Alex Kay-Jelski (pictured) just seven months to see off the BBC’s biggest disclosed earner, following a high-stakes stand-off that included an offer from Lineker to take a £350,000 pay cut
‘The BBC is changing the way it thinks about exploiting the digital rights and how they stretch across the entire weekend,’ the insider told The Times.
‘What we do across the entirety of the weekend is becoming more important than who is in the chair at 10.30pm on Saturday night.’
The BBC’s Director of Sport Alex Kay-Jelski is under pressure from bosses to attract a younger audience but his most immediate issue is to replace Gary Lineker, the Match of the Day presenter who had caused the Corporation so many headaches over impartiality issues.
Lineker is believed to have been ‘open’ to staying and even offered to cut his £1.35million-a-year salary but the BBC declined to give him a new MotD deal.
There are claims that Mr Kay-Jelski could be gearing the new show more towards ‘millennials and snowflakes’, and perhaps use more ‘influencers and celebrities’, according to The Sun.
A source said: ‘The hope would be to draw in younger, new audiences but the danger is they end up alienating their current viewers and driving them away.
‘Everyone expects there to be some changes but they don’t want to have MotD left unrecognisable just because of the whims of a handful of executives.
‘They want experts on the show who have some genuine expertise and experience, not amateurs who are brought on for their star appeal or online pulling power’.
An insider told MailOnline today that Gary Lineker will focus on his podcast business but likely move to a BBC rival to present football to ‘wound them’.
‘Despite his posturing and social conscience. Lineker will walk into any competitor’s studio’, the said.
‘This is a seismic shift that will in time wound the BBC. It will send a clear message the BBC has lost its grip on nurturing, developing, and retaining top talent because of its shackles’.
BBC sources claimed today that Mr Lineker had been ‘open’ to staying but his bosses shut the door.
MailOnline’s source, who also has links to the corporation’s other top show Strictly, said: ‘BBC seems utterly incapable of handling critics or adapting to the shifting currents and pressures of public opinion.
‘The BBC is increasingly showing signs it can’t cope with the complexities of modern celebrity. Stuck between protocols and a tidal wave of public scrutiny, it’s floundering.
‘The network seems ill-equipped to handle the volatile mix of fame, controversy, and public opinion that defines today’s celebrity landscape’.
Alex Scott has emerged as the favourite to replace Gary Lineker on Match of the Day.
She was seen out at a private dinner with Holly Willoughby held at Claridge’s Hotel in Mayfair this week.
Mark Chapman was the overwhelming favourite for the job but rumours he isn’t happy to share it with others has has helped Alex’s chances, bookies believe.
She is the presenter of Football Focus and presented The One Show and also alongside Lineker on the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year show.
Lineker, 63, confirmed on Monday that he was leaving the flagship football show at the end of the season after 25 years as its presenter – despite reportedly offering to give up £350,000 of his £1.35million salary to stay in the role.
One idea put forward was for Chapman, the current host of Match of the Day 2, to share presenting duties with Kelly Somers, 33, or even form a revolving cast with Gabby Logan, Alex Scott and Kelly Cates.
However, Chapman is said to be resisting the idea, which fellow pundits have branded a ‘cop out’.
Now ‘Chappers’, who is the bookies’ second favourite behind Scott to take over the gig, has broken his silence while chatting with co-host Logan on the pair’s podcast The Sports Agents.
After the 51-year-old’s phone started ringing on air, Logan took the chance to poke fun at her colleague.
She said: ‘I know, yeah. That’s the BBC, Match Of The Day.’
Chapman responded: ‘Haha! I tell you what, honestly, I don’t know what it’s like for you at the moment, but b***** hell, I could do with a PA at the moment.’
It comes after the veteran BBC presenter reportedly refused to share the job as host with another star.
‘As soon as Gary’s deal was done, Alex [Kay-Jelski] made it clear he wanted Mark and Kelly [Sommers] to replace him,’ a source told The Sun.
‘It would effectively be a job share and they would rotate hosting duties between them. Mark has made it clear within the team at MOTD that this isn’t something he would want to do.
‘He doesn’t want a job share, he wants Gary’s role as his own, which is understandable. It’s a headache for the BBC because they thought they’d found an easy solution. It’s back to the drawing board and negotiations are ongoing.’
Other pundits have been scathing of the idea, with Rangers legend Ally McCoist telling talkSPORT Breakfast: ‘I don’t know about the idea of a job share’.
Former Watford player Troy Deeney was quick to agree and said: ‘Yeah, I was about to say the same thing. I feel it’s an iconic show and you’re used to seeing one person.
‘I want to go and see one person, whether that be Chappers or that be Kelly. I know both of them, great, great people.
‘So whoever you choose to go with, I think trying to job share it is a cop out, in my opinion’.
Gary Lineker has presented the show since 1999.
The footballer-turned-pundit has been the permanent presenter of the show since 1999, taking over from Des Lynam.
Lineker, a lightning rod for criticism over impartiality in recent years who was seen walking his dog this morning, will leave the corporation altogether after the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States when he is 65, as first reported by MailOnline in October.
In a statement released by the company, they said: ‘The BBC and Gary Lineker have agreed in principle a contract extension through to the 2026 World Cup.
‘Gary will lead the coverage of the tournament, as England once again try to land a first major trophy since 1966, the other Home Nations look to qualify and Lionel Messi aims to retain the trophy he won with Argentina.
‘Gary will also host BBC Sport’s coverage of the FA Cup in the 2025-26 season, 35 years on from lifting the trophy as a player.
‘After a quarter of a century, Gary is stepping down from hosting Match of The Day at the end of this season. He will continue with the MOTD Top Ten podcast and the BBC will also host the hugely popular The Rest is Football podcast on BBC Sounds.’
BBC insiders appear to have quashed claims that he quit, suggesting instead that he had indicated to bosses that he would consider staying on at Match of the Day after next May.
‘Lineker was open to staying on at Match of the Day, but the BBC did not offer him a new contract for the show’, the corporation’s culture and media editor Katie Razzall has said.