Far from cancelled, Gary Lineker is attempting to conquer the world in 2026

Ben Rumsby Thu, 1 January 2026 at 8:00 am UTC·9 min read If 2025 was the year of the rat for Gary Lineker then 2026 threatens to be the one of the GOAT for the erstwhile Match of the Day host. Whether it is his big-money defection to ITV to fill the void left by Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, his £14m World Cup tie-up with Netflix, or the further expansion of his lucrative podcast empire, there are plenty of reasons why the next 12 months could end up among the “Greatest Of All Time” for the former England captain.Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement All this would have sounded absurd back in May after he shared an anti-Semitic rat emoji on social media – compounded by an...