Gary Lineker appears to have everything going his way these days, with his podcast venture thriving and a fresh Netflix agreement set to turn his football punditry show into a regular streaming staple. Yet, in a candid moment at the Edinburgh TV Festival, the former England striker admitted there is one figure from a rival camp he would happily bring into his own fold.
Speaking on stage about his journey from player to broadcaster to media entrepreneur, Lineker was asked which pundit from another outlet he would most like to sign. Without hesitation, he named Roy Keane, the former Manchester United captain known for his sharp tongue and unfiltered outbursts on air.
"He's box office," Lineker said, before adding with a grin that Keane's tactical insight isn't necessarily the main attraction, joking that the Irishman "doesn't give you that much" analytically.
Lineker went on to praise Keane's personality, describing him as a performer who has mastered his on-screen persona. "He's bloody good at being Roy Keane," he said. "I've met Roy a few times. He's really sweet … he just plays a character and he's good at it. He's really good at it, and he obviously knows his [stuff]. I was kidding about the analytical thing, a little bit."
Keane currently features on Gary Neville's The Overlap network, a growing competitor to Lineker's Goalhanger-produced show that also includes the Stick to Football program. The two operations have become symbolic rivals in the football media space, especially after both recently struck major streaming deals — The Rest Is Football with Netflix, and Stick to Football with Disney.
Despite the friendly rivalry, Lineker couldn't resist a bit of banter, suggesting Keane "probably would" jump ship if given the chance to join his show. He also took a swipe at other competitors entering the football podcast arena. "You've got Gary [Neville] and his team, you've got Piers Morgan and his team [making the World Cup Uncensored] show, and they're just trying to copy," Lineker said. "They're trailing in our wake and I wish them all the very best. There is room, particularly in football. There's a lot of competition."
The surge of football-focused podcasts securing deals with major streaming platforms reflects a wider appetite for sports-related content, particularly as the cost of live broadcasting rights continues to soar, making punditry programming an increasingly attractive alternative.
The Rest Is Football has enjoyed considerable success, reportedly featuring in Netflix's daily top 10 for all 40 days of its World Cup coverage run, prompting the streaming giant to extend the partnership into the domestic football season. Lineker noted that the show generated over seven million monthly streams last season alone, quipping that Neville's team was "languishing miles behind."
Beyond discussing his media ventures, Lineker also addressed his willingness to speak on political matters, notably his comments regarding the situation in Gaza, which recently drew criticism after he shared a video from an anti-Zionist activist. Defending his stance, Lineker said, "I don't think I speak much about politics, although politics is involved in everything that I speak about. I think ultimately you need to live with yourself and if I see things that upset me in humanitarian terms, then I find it quite upsetting, and it triggers me to use a platform that I would never have had before … People can disagree and that's absolutely fine."
Based on reporting from Guardian Football.