Gary Lineker claims he is "not antisemitic" while launching further attacks on Israel
The popular English commentator appeared on a podcast focused on Palestine, apologized for a controversial post, and attacked again: "The policy of the State of Israel is the killing of children."
More than a year after the storm that led to his departure from the BBC, Gary Lineker has revisited the affair of sharing a post about Zionism that included an illustration of a mouse — a symbol with clear antisemitic connotations. In an interview with the podcast Palestine Deep Dive, the former footballer admitted he made a mistake, but emphasized that he is not an antisemite — and continued to criticize Israel.
"I think I made a mistake because I missed an emoji in the post I shared on Instagram," Lineker said. "I am stupid, but I'm not that stupid to do something that would inflict self-harm in that way. I was mostly angry at myself for giving people an opportunity to attack me."
In May 2025, Lineker shared a post titled "Zionism explained in less than two minutes," alongside an illustration of a mouse. Following harsh criticism and outrage among Jewish employees at the BBC, he apologized and said at the time: "I would never knowingly share antisemitic content. It goes against everything I believe in." However, the Board of Deputies of British Jews rejected his apology and called it "hollow and late," while sharply criticizing his conduct on social media.
In the current interview, he added:
"Only I know if I am an antisemite, and I am not. I am not against anyone, but I am very much against the killing of children, and that is my position. At the moment, that is the policy of the government of Israel."
According to him, "that is where the confusion arises between criticism of Israel and antisemitism, and one must be very careful in how one says things."
But that is not all. The former England star claimed that FIFA must suspend Israel, and according to him, the fact that this has not happened yet indicates that "the people who run football have let us down." He further added: "So many footballers have lost their lives, and every time that happens, I tag FIFA and UEFA to see if they will finally do something. Football has power, and it can make a difference if it stands on the side of what is right."
Lineker also called Israel a "rogue state" and called for the removal of the organization Palestine Action from the list of terrorist organizations in the UK. He defined the decision to outlaw the organization as the "greatest absurdity" and "nonsense," adding: "Terrorists? Older women are terrorists? Really?" When asked specifically about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he said: "Do I think Netanyahu will be arrested if he comes to the UK? No. Do I think he should be arrested? Yes."
Following the post storm and the apology, Lineker ended his tenure at the BBC by mutual consent after more than 30 years. Since then, he continues to host the popular podcast The Rest is Football, produced by his production company, Goalhanger.
