Gary Lineker has insisted that the decision to take him off Match of the Day presenting duties was the BBC's and not his.
A spokesperson for the publicly-funded organisation confirmed on Friday that Lineker would not be presenting Match of the Day until an agreement has been made regarding his future use of social media.
Lineker described the government's new Migration Bill as "beyond awful" after it was unveiled by home secretary Suella Braverman on Tuesday, later adding: "This is just an immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s."
Responding to his axing, Lineker told Channel 5: "They've told me I have to step back."
On Friday, a BBC spokesperson said: "The BBC has been in extensive discussions with Gary and his team in recent days. We have said that we consider his recent social media activity to be a breach of our guidelines.
"The BBC has decided that he will step back from presenting Match of the Day until we’ve got an agreed and clear position on his use of social media.
"When it comes to leading our football and sports coverage, Gary is second to none. We have never said that Gary should be an opinion free zone, or that he can’t have a view on issues that matter to him, but we have said that he should keep well away from taking sides on party political issues or political controversies."
Lineker has hosted Match of the Day - the BBC's flagship football highlights programme - since 1999. He is employed by the broadcaster on a freelance basis and was the BBC's highest-paid presenter in 2020/21, earning £1.35m.
The controversy surrounds his tweets earlier this week. Responding to a tweet from the Home Secretary outlining plans to stop migrants crossing the English Channel on boats which claimed the United Kingdom is "overwhelmed", Lineker wrote: "Good heavens, this is beyond awful."
He later added: " There is no huge influx. We take far fewer refugees than other major European countries. This is just an immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the '30s."
Pundit Ian Wright has pulled out of Saturday's show in "solidarity" with Lineker. He confirmed the news on Twitter, posting: "Everybody knows what Match of the Day means to me, but I’ve told the BBC I won’t be doing it tomorrow. Solidarity."
The Mirror has launched a petition to have Gary Lineker reinstated at the BBC and as the host of Match of the Day. Sign it here.
