Gary Lineker
Gary Lineker shot exclusively for FourFourTwo magazine, March 2025(Image credit: Nick Eagle)

Gary Lineker has hosted Match of the Day for 26 years, and one show may be remembered more than most.

Lineker will step down as the programmes presenter at the end of the season, having sparked much amusement on one particular episode in 2016.

Back then, Lineker vowed that he would present Match of the Day in his pants if Leicester City won the Premier League, so small did he believe their chances were of actually succeeding.

A show to remember

Leicester were given a 5,000/1 shot by some bookmakers of winning the league at the start of that campaign, having narrowly avoided relegation during the previous season.

Lineker is a lifelong Leicester fan, having grown up supporting the club before starting his playing career at Filbert Street, and still wasnt convinced that they would continue their strong start to the 2015-16 season and go on to lift the trophy.

Remarkably though, thats exactly what Claudio Ranieris men did, making them arguably the most surprising champions in English football history.

That meant Lineker had to do what hed promised on the opening day of the next season, he did indeed present Match of the Day in his underwear.

Asked for a standout moment of his 26 years as Match of the Day host, during an exclusive interview with FourFourTwo, one show inevitably sprung to mind for Lineker.

Yeah, the one in the pants thankfully it didnt stand out! he quips mischievously.

That was the most surreal thing Ive done on Match of the Day because they said, Right, well do the opening of the show stood up. That doesnt normally happen, but it would have looked odd opening that show at the desk.

As I was delivering the first line, I was trying to keep a straight face and do it normally, but all I could see in my peripheral vision was four shoulders going up and down, of Alan Shearer and Ian Wright giggling. It was a laugh, I dont regret promising to do it. It was fun.

Senior Staff Writer

Chris joined FourFourTwo in 2015 and has reported from 20 countries, in places as varied as Jerusalem and the Arctic Circle. He's interviewed Pele, Zlatan and Santa Claus (it's a long story), as well as covering the World Cup, Euro 2020 and the Clasico. He previously spent 10 years as a newspaper journalist, and completed the 92 in 2017.


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Disclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by TakeSporty.
Publisher: FourFourTwo

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