Fresh doubts emerged over Gary Lineker‘s future as the host of Match of the Day tonight after rumours swept through corporation suggesting his time on the show may be coming to an end.

The presenter, who earns more than any other BBC star, has been the subject of speculation over his future with the broadcaster for months.

Now an email seen by MailOnline has been circulated appearing to suggest that bosses are already drawing up a statement to be released announcing his departure.

It has not been possible to verify the authenticity of the email – but when MailOnline approached the BBC we were told: ‘We have nothing to announce, and we have not agreed next steps with regard to his contract. He is on contract until the end of the season.’

Lineker himself, though, when approached by MailOnline told our reporter outside his home in south-west London: ‘F*** off, I won’t talk to you. Go away.’

Gary Lineker seen outside his South West London house today

The presenter has been the subject of speculation over his future with the broadcaster for months

Wearing a blue and green jacket, jeans and trainers, he then got into a taxi which had come to pick him up.

The 63-year-old presenter has reportedly been linked with jobs at rival broadcasters and before his exit under a cloud, Jermaine Jenas was being lined up to replace the former England captain.

Reports in late September suggested Lineker would hold talks with the BBC this month over a multi-year deal after volunteering to take a pay cut.

It was suggested he would stay on at MOTD for £1m a year — £350,000 less than his current salary.

A source was quoted by the Sun as saying: ‘Gary is hugely popular with both fans and players alike. The sense is that, with so much uncertainty and scandal at the BBC, right now viewers are crying out for a safe pair of hands.

Gary adores the BBC, and loves his job, and recognises what an honour it is to host television’s flagship football show, as well as international games.

‘Gary has long maintained that the BBC provides excellent value for money – and has quite literally put his money where his mouth is and offered to take a substantial pay cut.’

Lineker first began his punditry with the BBC at 5 Live and Grandstand before taking over as host of Match of the Day in 1999.

He has also presented Sports Personality of the Year, London 2012 and Golf for the corporation.

Only a few weeks ago, Lineker suggested he would have ‘another year, at least’ at the helm of the BBC’s long-running football show, which celebrated its 60th anniversary in August.

Gary adores the BBC, and loves his job, and recognises what an honour it is to host television’s flagship football show

The 63-year-old presenter has reportedly been linked with jobs at rival broadcasters

He opened up about his future when asked how long he would keep presenting, and replied: ‘I don’t know… it depends how long they want me, I suppose.’

Interviewed by BBC Breakfast’s John Watson in August, he said: ‘I mean, I love doing it at the moment (and) I’ve got another year doing it, at least.

‘We’ll have to wait and see what happens. It’s an ever-changing feast, football, and television and football, and rights for the Premier League and stuff like that so all of these things will play a part.

‘But I just feel that it’s been a privilege to present it for 25 years now. I must be getting old.’

Lineker’s time as the face of Match of the Day has been controversial at times, with the presenter temporarily suspended last year for criticising the government’s asylum policy in a controversially worded tweet.

He returned soon after following a walk-out by his MOTD colleagues who showed solidarity with the former England striker, and the row even prompted the Beeb to overhaul and draw up a new set of guidelines for its presenters and their social media use.

Elsewhere in the interview, the BBC’s highest-paid star also explained why the show meant so much to him.

‘It’s been a part of my life, a big part of my life right from the start,’ he explained. ‘I watched it as a kid, it was the one night my dad would let me stay up to watch Match of the Day.

‘Because a lot of the population don’t have Sky or TNT or any of these streaming channels that show football and the Premier League, I think about half the population get their Premier League fix from Match of the Day and still do.’

He was also asked why he thinks the BBC show continues to draw in viewers, to which he replied: ‘I think part of it is that it’s trusted.

‘The longevity of the show, the love for the show. I think people enjoy seeing it that way, they like to see the highlights. They like to get their Premier League fix from us and hopefully that will continue.’

Lineker’s spot as the Beeb’s highest-paid talent is as much of a talking point with critics as his social media antics – and it was something his MOTD predecessor Des Lynam recently branded ‘unjustifiable’.

After quitting football, Lineker’s presenting career began with the BBC where he presented MOTD, as well as working for Al Jazeera Sports and NBC Sports Network.

With a reported overall net worth of £30million, he is one of the UK’s most notable sports figures and consistently presents at major tournaments including the Euros and the World Cup.

Over the course of his stellar football career, he played for England 80 times and scored 49 goals before retiring in 1994 to enter the media world.

As well as presenting, he signed a £1.2million three-year deal with Walkers Crisps in 2020 and has established his own podcast production company Goalhanger, which produces podcasts that includes The Rest is History and The Rest is Politics.

His BBC salary has been reduced since 2019 when he earnt 1.75m, and he took a voluntary pay cut of 23 per cent in 2020.

Goalhanger claims to be the UK’s largest independent podcast group, with 17.5 million downloads as of July 2023.

It was founded by Lineker, along with Tony Pastor and Jack Davenport.

In July, it was reported that Lineker plotted a departure from the BBC to its biggest rival – only to learn ITV was not interested, it was understood.

The Daily Mail was told in July that a representative for the Match of the Day presenter made the overtures to ITV in the past 18 months.

Sources indicated the conversations were aimed at sounding out if they wanted the former England player as a sports anchor.