Gary Lineker settles £5m tax bill with HMRC

Gary Lineker appears to be in the clear over a long-running £4.9 million tax-bill battle with HMRC after settling ahead of a court date next month.

The outgoing Match of the Day host and his ex-wife Danielle Bux are listed to appear before the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber) on Dec 2. An appeal was launched by HMRC last June after Lineker initially won his own appeal against the tax authority’s claim on income from the BBC and BT Sport from 2013 to 2014 and 2017 to 2018.

However, friends of the BBC’s best-paid presenter now say the “appeal has been withdrawn and the matter settled”. The hearing, the source assures, will no longer take place.

The settlement comes to light just two days after Lineker and the BBC confirmed he will step down from the broadcaster’s flagship show at the end of this season. He will, however, continue presenting FA Cup coverage and will also front World Cup 2026 as part of an 18-month reduced-rate contract extension.

Lineker will be relieved to have resolved his long-running HMRC dispute at the same time. Lineker used to work for BT Sport – not TNT Sports – and HMRC had said he was an employee of both broadcasters before a judge ruled last year that he was a freelancer and had contracts with both broadcasters.

Throughout those proceedings, he had insisted all taxes were paid on the income via a partnership (GLM) set up in 2012 with Ms Bux.

Lineker wrote on social media at the time: “I had already paid all tax due at the top rate and happily so. I’m totally flabbergasted as to why I was expected to pay double. Thankfully, justice was done.”

HMRC had also launched similar actions against other broadcasters including Lorraine Kelly and Kaye Adams. Lineker’s lawyer James Rivett KC previously said that the star had been “dragged through the papers accused of not paying income tax which has been paid”.

An HMRC spokesperson had previously said: “The tribunal has confirmed the off-payroll rules apply to partnerships, as we have always said. However, we do not agree with its decision that the rules cannot apply in this case and we’re considering an appeal. It is our duty to ensure everyone pays the right tax under the law, regardless of wealth or status.”

HMRC then appealed to the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery Chamber).