Gary Lineker will be back on the BBC this weekend – but his much-anticipated return won’t be made presenting Match of the Day.
The BBC announced on Monday morning that Lineker would return after the corporation backed down following a weekend of chaos. Lineker had been suspended by the broadcaster on Friday after he refused to apologise for tweeting criticism of the Government’s bill on illegal migrants.
BBC director general Tim Davie spent the weekend in talks with Lineker in a bid to resolve the situation, which spiralled out of control after his colleagues refused to work in solidarity with him. Match of the Day was broadcast as a 20-minute show being without a presenter, pundits or commentary, while Match of the Day 2, the live WSL and 5 Live schedule were also impacted.