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Gary Lineker's son has said he believes the sportscaster will return to Match Of The Day, but "he won't go back on his word", according to reports. In an interview with The Sunday Mirror, the former England player's eldest son George said his father was "a bit disappointed" when the BBC asked him to stop hosting the Saturday Matchday Match (MOTD) game. after comparing the language used to launch a new government policy on asylum seekers to 1930s Germany in a tweet. However, he said Lineker had been "overwhelmed by the support" of other pundits who had pulled out of various BBC sports broadcasts in solidarity with him, notably his MOTD co-presenters Ian Wright and Alan Shearer.
George Lineker told the Sunday Mirror: "Dad is a good man, a good human being, and I'm proud of him for keeping his word. That's why he was dropped from the show, because he didn't apologize. No. But he will always speak up people who have no voice.
“She is passionate about helping refugee charities – she has hosted two refugees that she is still in contact with and trying to help.
“It means a lot to him to stand up for people whose only hope is to flee a country with only the clothes on their backs. That is why it has been so firm.
“Will he return to the Game of the Day? I think so, he loves Match of the Day. But he will never go back on his word.
Saturday's match day only aired for 20 minutes and included no expert commentary or analysis or even its famous theme song, showing only brief clips from the day's matches.
Before the show began, a continuity announcer said: "Now on BBC One, we're sorry we can't show our normal match of the day, including tonight's commentary. But now here is the best action from the Premier League matches. Today's League".
Several of the station's other football shows were canceled at the last minute on Saturday as more presenters and journalists walked out, with neither Football Focus nor Final Score airing, while 5 Live's radio coverage dropped sharply and changed for the whole day.
The BBC chief executive has apologized for the disruption to the station's sports programming but confirmed he would not resign over Lineker's line of impartiality.
Tim Davie told BBC News in Washington, DC on Saturday: 'I'm so sorry about the interruption today. It was a difficult day and I am sorry that the audience was affected and did not understand the lineup.
“As a sports fan, I know like everyone else that missing the lineup is a real blow and I'm sorry.
"We are working very hard to resolve the situation and make sure the launch gets back on the air."
The managing director said he would not go into details of the ongoing discussions, but "everyone wants to calmly resolve the situation."
“I would say that Gary Lineker is an excellent broadcaster. He's the best in the business, that's not up for debate."
“To be clear, success for me is this: Gary is back on the air and together we are bringing audiences this world-class sports coverage which, as I said, I regret not being able to deliver today. "
Davie also said he did not believe it was about "left or right" politics, but about society's ability to balance free speech and fairness, adding: "We are fierce advocates of democratic debate, of free expression, but with that comes the need to create an unbiased organization.
Asked if he would resign because "there are a lot of people in the UK who just don't trust you", Mr Davie replied: "Absolutely not."
"I think my job is to serve license fee payers and deliver a BBC that is really focused on world-class, unbiased historical production, and I hope to figure this out and deliver."
A quick YouGov poll found that 53% of the British public believe the BBC was wrong to suspend Lineker from Match Of The Day for his comments on the government's asylum policy.
The data also revealed that 27% thought the broadcaster was right to suspend it, while 20% were not sure.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement that the dispute surrounding Lineker and the BBC is "their business, not the government's," acknowledging that "not everyone will always agree" with his new privacy policy. asylum.
The BBC's Nomia Iqbal also asked Davie about BBC chairman Richard Sharp, who has faced growing calls to resign over the line of cronyism caused by helping Boris Johnson secure an £800,000 loan.
Reflecting on why Mr. Sharp still had a job, he said: "As far as the president is concerned, I have a lot of responsibility in this job for thousands of people, one thing I don't do is appointment as president."
"The way the board is recruited and that role is different than writing about me running the BBC, making those decisions, trying to be fair and getting a really impartial BBC."
The station's Sunday sports programming remains suspended and Match Of The Day 2 is also in doubt after soccer pundit Jermain Defoe announced it would not appear.
The former England striker tweeted on Saturday: "Always a great privilege to work with BBC MOTD. But tomorrow I have made the decision to step down as a scholar. @GaryLineker.
Further questions have been raised as sportscaster Mark Chapman, who is due to present Match Of The Day 2, did not appear on BBC Radio 5 Live Sport on Saturday.
Gabby Logan will also present live coverage from 2:15pm as Scotland take on Ireland at Murrayfield for the Six Nations rugby union.
The Welsh presenter has yet to say whether or not she will host the show.
The Women's Soccer Show will also air from 11:45pm for over 40 minutes, but could also be affected as the BBC only shows "limited sports programming" this weekend.
PA wire
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