Gary Lineker breaks silence on his Match of the Day future with 'final ...

Former Leicester City striker Gary Lineker playfully responded to rumours that Saturday night's Match of the Day might mark his departure. Amid talks about his future with the BBC and being in the last year of his contract, speculation about the £1.3million-a-year host leaving has been rife.

Despite anchoring the programme since 1999, suggestions have surfaced that Lineker could be on his way out after an alleged internal email hinting at an impending announcement by the BBC was reported by The Daily Mail. Viewers and fans anticipated whether this would be Lineker's last appearance, but he addressed the situation at the start of the show, quipping: "Seven games on the way and it's my final show.... Before the international break."

Lineker had previously sidestepped commenting on this particular claim when asked earlier in the week.

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However, the BBC downplayed the rumours, stating that Lineker is still under contract and no future decisions have been confirmed. A BBC representative clarified: "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."

There's speculation that Gary Lineker, who faced a brief suspension last year after making a controversial comparison of the Conservative Party's immigration policy to that of Nazi Germany, might be seen as expendable by the new director of sport, Alex Kay-Jelski. Reports from the Mail on Sunday suggest Kay-Jelski is not pleased with some of Lineker's opinions expressed on his popular podcast, 'The Rest is Football', reports the Mirror.

A source close to Lineker shared with the Mail on Sunday: "Gary doesn't deserve this. If they are worried about how much they pay him, then they should pay him less. What's Gary supposed to do? " and "He's been a great presenter, people love him. He's Mr Football. The BBC are lucky to have had him."

Earlier in the year, when asked about his tenure on Match of the Day during an appearance on BBC Breakfast, Lineker remarked: "It depends how long they want me, I suppose," adding, "I love doing it at the moment; I've still got another year left, at least. So we'll have to wait and see what happens."

He also noted the changing landscape of football and television rights, saying, "Obviously it's another change in football and television and the rights of the Premier League and stuff like that. All of these things will play a part. But I just feel it's been an absolute privilege to have presented it for 25 years now. I must be getting old! ".