Broadcaster Gary Lineker is to step down as host of flagship football programme Match of the Day at the end of this season, BBC News understands.

His departure is expected to be announced officially by the BBC on Tuesday.

The Sun, who first reported the story, also said the presenter would leave the BBC after leading coverage of the 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.

Former BBC director general Greg Dyke told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Lineker was "the outstanding sports presenter of his time", but added: "Life moves on, presenters don't stay forever."

Lineker's representative has been approached for comment. The BBC press office declined to comment.

Lineker, whose contract was coming to an end, entered negotiations with the BBC's new head of sport in October.

BBC News understands that Lineker was open to staying on at Match of the Day, but the BBC did not offer him a new contract for the show.

The 63-year-old has hosted Match of the Day since 1999. He will have held the post for 26 years when he leaves at the end of the Premier League season in May 2025.

Dyke was director general when Lineker first began hosting the football show in 1999, and said losing the presenter was "a big loss", but "in the end people watch Match of the Day for the football".

Lineker told Esquire magazine in an interview published earlier this month that he accepted he will "have to slow down at some point".

Earlier in the year, the presenter joked about speculation he could leave the BBC. He opened a Match of the Day broadcast by saying it was his “final show”. After a pause, he added “before the international break”.

Dyke also said the BBC is "in difficulties financially", referring to recent job cuts being made as part of wider BBC efforts to save £700m a year, adding that losing Lineker "would be a saving on a sports budget, which you could use elsewhere".

He did not speculate on whether Lineker had been "offered a new contract or not", or as to whether the recent controversy over the presenter's social media use was connected with his departure.

"Whether this is anything to do with that I don't know. It's one of the few times I've disagreed with the BBC since I left.

"I thought that he was a sports presenter, and therefore what he was saying about politics was irrelevant to his performance as as a presenter.

"But it's there in the background. So it must have been a thought in the mind of of whoever took the decision."

Lineker is one of the corporation's best-known presenters and its highest-paid star, of those whose salaries are declared, earning more than £1.3m a year.

He has also presented coverage of major tournaments like World Cups and European Championships for the BBC, as well as BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremonies.

Lineker has worked for other sports networks during his time at the BBC, including US network NBC and BT Sport (now TNT Sport). He has also branched out into podcasts, co-founding production company Goalhanger, which makes popular shows including The Rest is History, The Rest is Politics and The Rest is Entertainment.

Alastair Campbell, who co-presents The Rest Is Politics podcast, said Lineker would be "a very hard act to follow", Sky News reported.

"He is an excellent broadcaster and a very good guy," Campbell said.

Lineker's new contract has now been agreed and he will leave on a high at the biggest tournament in world football. But replacing a star presenter on a high profile show is always a risk.

Some fans have suggested Match of the Day 2 host Mark Chapman should step into the role, but other football presenters including Gabby Logan and Alex Scott are also on fans' lists as possible successors.

Lineker was briefly suspended by bosses last year after an outcry over his social media post about the UK's asylum policy.

The incident led to a review of BBC social media guidelines, which concluded that high-profile presenters should be allowed to express views on issues and policies but stop short of political campaigning.

Lineker described the new rules at the time as "all very sensible".

Before becoming a TV presenter, Lineker had a hugely successful career as a striker for England as well as Leicester, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona.

Additional reporting by Steven McIntosh, entertainment reporter