Gary Lineker 'swerves court showdown as he settles huge £4.9m HMRC tax bill'

Match of the Day host Gary Lineker has reportedly settled his £4.9m tax bill with HMRC before his court date next month as he was set to be quizzed on his earnings

Gary Lineker has appeared to have swerved his court showdown with HMRC over a £4.9m tax bill.

The Match of the Day host, 63 - who’s quitting the football show at the end of the season - was set to be quizzed about his earnings from when he worked for BBC and BT Sport from 2013 to 2018. He had listed himself as a freelancer yet the tax authorities considered him an employee.

Gary along with his ex-wife Danielle Bux were listed to appear before the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) on December 2. However, it has now been reported the appeal was been withdrawn and the matter has been settled. According to reports, the hearing will no longer take place.

The news comes just days after the BBC confirmed Gary will leave Match of the Day. He first fronted the popular football show in 1999. Gary's time at the BBC won't come to an end just yet as both parties agreed in principle to him presenting coverage of the next World Cup in 2026.

He will also host coverage of the FA Cup in the 2025-26 season and continue with the MoTD Top Ten podcast. The Rest is Football podcast, featuring Gary will also continue. In March last year, courts ruled the former football star's favour against HMRC yet three months later, HMRC appealed that decision.

The former England ace argued that he had paid all his tax legitimately though his firm Gary Lineker Media Ltd. Speaking of his decision to continue to work with the BBC following his Match of the Day exit, Gary said: "I'm delighted to continue my long association with BBC Sport and would like to thank all those who made this happen."

Attention has also turned to who will replace Gary with Match of the Day 2 favourite Mark Chapman, stalwart sports presenter Gabby Logan and Football Focus star Alex Scott in the running. A BBC statement said: "Plans for Match of the Day will be announced in due course."

Gary is the longest serving MOTD host in history after succeeding the iconic Des Lynam back in 1999. He had started as a BBC Radio 5 Live presenter and also worked on Saturday afternoon show Grandstand. In March last year, the sports star was briefly suspended from the programme after his tweet about the government's asylum policy sparked a row over BBC presenters expressing political views on social media.

Alex Kay-Jelski, the BBC's new director of sport, said in a statement: "Gary is a world-class presenter, and we're delighted that he'll lead our coverage of the next World Cup and continue to lead our live coverage of the FA Cup. After 25 seasons Gary is stepping down from MOTD. We want to thank him for everything he has done for the show, which continues to attract millions of viewers each week. He'll be hugely missed on the show but we're so happy he is staying with the BBC to present live football."

The Mirror has contacted Gary Lineker's representative for comment.

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