Gary Lineker faces calls to be sacked over 'antisemitic' post as campaign group files official complaint

14 May 2025, 13:11 | Updated: 19 May 2025, 20:59

Labour Against Antisemitism has called on the BBC to remove Gary Lineker from all football coverage over an Instagram post of an 'antisemitic' rat emoji.

The campaign group has lodged a formal complaint to the BBC about a post Gary Lineker shared to his Instagram story on Monday, claiming that keeping him in a presenter role signifies the broadcaster's support for his 'antisemitic' views.

The footage shared by the outgoing Match of the Day presenter was created by the campaign group Palestine Lobby and features a rat emoji onscreen.

Rats were historically used in Nazi Germany as a slur against Jewish people.

Labour Against Antisemitism is now calling on the national broadcaster to axe Mr Lineker from all future programming.

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In a letter shared exclusively with LBC, Labour Against Antisemitism Director Alex Hearn writes:

"The catalogue of posts by BBC journalists and staff inciting hate and violence against Jews is a matter of public record. But now the BBC’s highest paid presenter, Gary Lineker, has shared a post to his 1.2 million followers on Instagram prominently featuring the image of a rat to ‘explain’ Zionism."

"This particular image is taken directly from Nazi propaganda which led to to the Holocaust, portraying Jews as rats as part of their campaign to dehumanise us. Supporting images and symbols taken from the Nazi regime which led to the slaughter of six million Jews cannot be ignored if the BBC is to retain any credibility."

The letter also states that Mr Lineker is a "liability" and accuses the national broadcaster of allowing individuals to use its "prestige and reputation" to incite hate.

"License fee payers deserve better and we do not wish to see him on our screens any longer. Leaving him in post signifies a support for his views", the letter continues.

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"In the BBC guidelines, you state your principals on racism: “opposition to racism is a fundamental democratic principle, reflected, for example, in the fact that incitement to racial hatred is a criminal offence in the UK. It is therefore fully consistent with our guidelines."  It appears that as you intend to retain Mr Lineker to present major sporting events, that you do not include Jews under your definition of racism."

A spokesman for Mr. Lineker told Telegraph Sport that he immediately deleted the video after learning of the symbolic meaning.

“Whilst viewing and reposting a video, Gary did not notice a rodent emoticon added by the author of the post,” he added. “Although if he had, he would not have made any connection. The repost has been removed.”

The cartoon image of a rat had accompanied a video in which Canadian-Palestinian lawyer Diana Buttu attacked Israel’s war in Gaza.

It comes after the presenter shared that he thinks bosses wanted him to leave Match Of The Day – with the former footballer adding that he “didn’t like the damage” done by his controversial tweeting.

The 64-year-old outgoing MOTD host will leave the broadcasting corporation after fronting its coverage of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Earlier this year, Lineker condemned – along with more than 500 other media figures – the withdrawal of the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone after it emerged that the child narrator, Abdullah, is the son of Ayman Alyazouri, who has worked as Hamas’s deputy minister of agriculture.

He said the BBC had “capitulated”, adding that he does not see Abdullah as an issue, and maintaining that the corporation should not have admitted to “a number of serious failings in their commissioning and editorial processes”.

The BBC has been approached for comment.