England icon Gary Lineker lands huge new hosting job at ITV after controversial BBC departure

Lineker is set to present a new game show on ITV called The Box, according to The Sun. The new show will be broadcast on Saturday evenings and is expected to replace  Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. The show is based on a popular Norwegian programme and involves 12 celebrities undertaking challenges while inside a box.

The former England star confirmed he was quitting the BBC back in May amid more controversy after a social media post about Zionism that included an illustration of a rat, considering to be an anti-Semitic insult. He has previously revealed he had received death threats after retweeting a social media post calling for Israel to be banned from football events and was also temporarily suspended from his role as Match of the Day presenter in 2023 after criticising the government's immigration policy.

A source has told fans what to expect from Lineker's new show, via The Sun: "The Box is massive in Norway, and the rights were quickly sold to Denmark and now the UK. ITV are really excited about it - and believe they have finally found a worthy successor to Saturday Night Takeaway. They have long been sniffing around Gary and just needed to find the right format for him. They’re confident they’ve found that now, and the BBC’s loss is their gain.”

The Box is scheduled to start filming later this year and is currently slated to be broadcast in 2026. An insider told The Sun: "The scheduling hasn’t yet been confirmed but filming takes place in the autumn, and the series is due to air early spring. It looks likely to get a Saturday night slot though, but obviously it’s all still to play for."