Gary Lineker is one of the most famous faces on UK television and has been the face of Match of the Day for 25 years – but away from work, he has an unusual living arrangement

Gary Lineker has an unusual set-up with his ex-wife Danielle Bux(Image: PA)

Despite facing two divorces in the public eye, Gary Lineker has maintained a unique relationship with one of his ex-wives – and her husband isn’t phased in the slightest.

The Match of the Day presenter, 64, is a familiar face on TV due to his illustrious football career and punditry role. The veteran host is set to wrap up his MOTD tenure at the end of this season, but will remain with the BBC until the end of the 2026 World Cup. In an interview ahead of his official departure, Lineker suggested that BBC chiefs made their feelings clear on his exit after a whopping 25-year stint on the flagship programme.

Speaking in an interview with the channel, he said: “It’s time [to leave]. I’ve done it for a long time. It’s been brilliant. It’s been great.” He added: “Well, perhaps they want me to leave. There was the sense of that, yes. I’ve got another year and I’m going to do the FA Cup and World Cup and they’re taking our podcast now, the Match of the Day Top Ten, as well as The Rest Is Football that I do with Alan [Shearer] and Micah [Richards].”

Gary’s first marriage to Michelle Cockayne lasted from 1986 until 2006(Image: Getty)

Away from work, Lineker, who earns £1.35 million per year from the corporation, spends time at his London home with his four sons. The former England striker has been married twice and shares all his children with his first wife, Michelle Cockayne, whom he wed in 1986 and divorced two decades later.

In 2007, the star began dating Danielle Bux, who was 20 years his junior, and they later married in Italy. But their marriage only lasted six years before the pair announced they were splitting in early 2016, reportedly due to their differing opinions on starting a family.

In 2019, Gary explained: “Danielle and I are best mates, we still speak three times a day, we text all the time. When she comes to London, she stays with me, and when I go to LA, I see her.”

The Leicester icon has since been single and has candidly opened up about his dating life. Back in 2021, he claimed to be unbothered about intimacy anymore, conceding he was at an age where his testosterone levels had dropped. More recently, he has insisted he doesn’t miss being married and is content that his working life and sons occupy the bulk of his time.

He was then married to Danielle for six years before they split in 2016(Image: Getty Images)

In an interview with The Times, Gary said: “I like being on my own… I don’t feel lonely. I have the odd date here and there, but nothing, not in terms of a long relationship. I’ve been married most of my adult life. Two really good marriages, I’m friends with both.”

The pundit described his second wife Danielle as his ‘best mate’ and refused to comment on his sex life. He insisted: “I am still single. I am not going down that route! I have been there before and tried to explain myself and I got slaughtered by my friends.” Gary also denied ever using dating apps and refused to let his sons set up an online profile for him.

After Gary and Danielle split, she went on to marry Nate Greenwald, an American entertainment lawyer, in 2019 and the couple welcomed their now-four-year-old daughter, Romy. Although, the exes still come together with their families. Last Christmas, Danielle posted a photo with Gary alongside her eldest daughter Ella, who she shares with a former partner Adam Willis.

Gary says it’s ‘always a delight’ to spend time with his ex-wife Danielle Bux(Image: Getty Images Europe)

She captioned the photo “Our annual Christmas dinner”, and Gary shared the picture with the comment, “Always a delight”. The sports presenter previously explained how he continues to keep in touch with his ex and Danielle’s current husband never gets ‘jealous’ of their relationship.

“He’s not got a jealous bone in his body,” Gary said to the Radio Times. “We get on really well. We go out for dinner when I’m in LA. It might be unusual and people might go, ‘That’s weird’ but, frankly, I don’t care. What is normal? Is it better to get divorced and end up fighting, screaming and shouting? Or is it better to get on if you can?”