Match of the Day will broadcast as normal tonight - but there will be a change to its normal coverage.
That is because the BBC's flagship football show is in crisis after its regular commentators joined a boycott of the programme in solidarity with Gary Lineker. The announcements came late on Friday afternoon.
The announcement that its regular commentators would not be taking part in this weekend’s show came after Ian Wright and Alan Shearer pulled out of Saturday's show. Premier League players and managers will also not be interviewed by Match of the Day after today’s games.
Why is Gary Lineker not on Match of the Day tonight?
The Lineker row began after the announcement on Tuesday of government plans to ban people arriving in the UK illegally from ever claiming asylum. The former Everton forward came under fire from Suella Braverman, the home secretary, and a number of Conservative MPs over a tweet he posted in response to the plans being revealed.
Lineker, writing on Twitter, said that it was an 'immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s'.
Then on Friday it was announced that the former Everton forward has been suspended from the BBC for breaching impartiality guidelines after criticising the government’s asylum policies. That suspension meant that the former England international was not allowed to present tonight's show.
The broadcaster said it deemed the Match of the Day host’s 'recent social media activity to be a breach of our guidelines' and he 'should keep well away from taking sides on party political issues or political controversies'. Lineker has hosted Match of the Day since 1999 and is employed by the BBC on a freelance basis.
