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WRITES JACK KELLY | DEPUTY SPORTS EDI

In 1776, Edward Gibbon wrote a comprehensive history about the collapse of the Roman empire entitled Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire A seminal piece, the six volumes illustrate the multiple internal and external factors that led to the eventual collapse of the greatest empire in history A case can be made for the empire’s economic decay or perhaps the weakening of its once all-conquering army being the main causes of its fall, but the political instability within the empire is frequently mentioned by historians as being central to the collapse of the Roman empire; it eroded civic morale and divided the military and population Similarly, another major empire witnessed a shaky period of sorts due to inner political turmoil: the BBC (A bit hyperbolic? Definitely )

Obviously linking the decline of the Roman empire and the BBC’s recent troubles is a stretch But the BBC’s mishandling of the Gary Lineker political tweet controversy- if you would go as far to call it that- has raised the question for the umpteenth time: Is sport political? It undoubtedly is But a new question has been raised in the last few weeks: does the BBC as the national broadcaster need to evolve and embrace football's new role in politics and society? Most would say yes

But only a matter of months after the Qatar World Cup (one of the most politicised, controversial sporting events in history), it is perplexing that Gary Lineker, who was praised for being one of the most outspoken critics of Qatar’s authoritarian regime hosting the World Cup, is being vilified for criticising the British governments abhorrent immigration policy; a double standard beyond belief

Under Rishi Sunak’s government’s plans, adults arriving in the UK on small boats or in the back of a lorry would be denied the right to claim asylum, even if they had come from a war zone or faced persecution in countries well known for human rights abuses Instead people would be sent back to “a country or territory to which there is reason to believe [they would] be admitted”, the country that they had embarked from to the UK, their country of origin or another country where they held a passport, according to the draft bill This bill was seemingly enacted by the Conservative government to deflect attention from the fact that the UK is deteriorating

In response to this, Lineker tweeted ‘There is no huge influx, We take far fewer refugees than other major European countries This is just an immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30’s’

The uproar that followed was remarkable and naturally the furore that ensued was populated by the far-right commentators who are usually immersed in the battlefields of free speech - but only when they are defending Jeremy Clarkson’s jocular racism or his calls for striking workers to be shot (on the BBC) or Nigel Farrage’s flippant xenophobia Strangely, the ‘you can’t say anything anymore’ brigade are slow to jump to Lineker’s right to defend asylum seekers Bit ironic?

But it is somewhat apt that it is Lineker who has stirred this debate As a broadcaster, Lineker is articulate and charming but it's his record in addressing wider issues within football and society that has set him apart He has long been an advocate for using football as a means of tackling societal issues by regularly sharing his views on politics in the UK As mentioned, he received widespread acclaim for his monologue on the BBC’s coverage of the World Cup critiquing FIFA’s decision to award Qatar the competition. He also spoke at length with BBC pundits Alan Shearer, Alex Scott and Ashley Williams about Qatar’s human rights abuses and discriminatory LGBTQ+ laws

Lineker stated “It’s the most controversial World Cup in history, and a ball has not yet been kicked Ever since Fifa chose Qatar back in 2010, the smallest nation to have hosted football’s greatest competition has faced some big questions.’’ Before adding “From accusations of corruption in the bidding process to the treatment of migrant workers who built the stadiums, where many lost their lives ’’ There was no discussion to remove Lineker from his broadcasting role for criticising the Qatari government then so why has that changed?

For a programme that is known for staying in its lane as a highlights and analysis show, Match of the Day has now indeed been politicised Especially following the announcement of Gary Lineker’s exit along with his fellow pundits Ian Wright and Alan Shearer declaring that they would not participate in the show on the 11th of March 2023 as a show of solidarity

But this is a new epoch for football Politics and football are now inherently linked For example, state owned clubs with questionable human rights records are using clubs and, consequently, the game to cleanse their problematic images This is a popular weapon of foreign policy employed by petro-states and oligarchs And now with growing Qatari interest in the biggest club in English football, Manchester United, it cannot be ignored anymore