Next Match Of The Day Host Odds: Scott Makes Move But Chapman Still Frontrunner

Gary Lineker recently confirmed he is to vacate his Match of the Day hotseat at the end of the season, and there has been some big market moves on betting sites in the past couple of weeks. 

The former England striker hasn't said too much about his impending departure, after agreeing to front both the BBC's 2025/26 FA Cup coverage, and their 2026 World Cup coverage, but there has been plenty of speculation about his replacement. 

Lineker has previously backed his pundit pal Micah Richards to take over from him, but it was their partner in crime, pundit Alan Shearer, who had a go at hosting the show last Saturday. 

Lineker was hosting his first MOTD episode since confirming his upcoming exit, but viewers were surprised to see Shearer open the show instead. 

The former Newcastle striker said to the camera: "All good things must come to an end…"

Lineker then joked: "Yes, Alan - Lee Carsley’s England reign is over. 

"It’s back to business in the Premier League. Seven games on the way, Alan Shearer and Ashley Williams join us."

Lineker then quipped: "Al ain't getting the job," which left Shearer laughing. 

Next Match Of The Day Host Odds

Chapman Remains Market Leader 

With Shearer, who is a 33/1 outsider on UK betting sites, seemingly out of the running to replace Lineker, who will? 

Mark Chapman was the early frontrunner immediately after it was confirmed the position will be vacant, and he remains the 6/4 favourite with Coral. 

However, in the meantime, there was a report in The Sun newspaper that Chapman had allegedly rejected the chance to share the job with Kelly Somers, whose price to land the position has drifted to 20/1 from 8/1 as a result.

A source told the publication: "As soon as Gary’s deal was done, [BBC Sport Director] Alex [Kay-Jelski] made it clear he wanted Mark and Kelly to replace him.

"It would effectively be a job share and they would rotate hosting duties between them.

"Mark has made it clear within the team at MOTD that this isn’t something he would want to do."

Despite such speculation, Chappers, as he is affectionately known in the industry, still appears to be the most likely to replace Lineker.

He has been a safe pair of hands at the BBC for years and has seamlessly stepped in for Lineker, and also fronted Match of the Day 2. 

But there are two other candidates in single-figure odds.

Scott Vs Cates 

Alex Scott is one of the biggest positive movers in the Match of the Day Next Presenter market in recent days. 

The Football Focus presenter is 4/1 with Bet365, from a best price of 6/1 two weeks ago. 

While the former England international may not have bags of TV presenting experience, she is well loved at the BBC, where she has risen up the ranks since retiring from the beautiful game. 

Scott is now level in price with Kelly Cates, who is 4/1 with BetVictor to replace Lineker. 

Cates has plenty of TV presenting experience to draw upon, as does Gabby Logan, who is the subject of a huge market drift. 

Logan had opened up as 6/1 joint-third favourite with Coral, alongside Scott, just hours after it was revealed Lineker was leaving the position. 

However, she is now available at a massive 16/1 with the same bookmaker, despite being as low as 4/1 with Bet365 for the job. 

Other sports presenters who will no doubt be in the conversation to be the first-ever full-time female presenter of Match of the Day include Laura Woods and Kate Abdo, who are both 33/1 chances. 

Corden's New Late Show?

Following the announcement of Lineker's upcoming MOTD exit, it's been claimed Kay-Jelski is looking to take the show in a "different direction". 

If that is the case then producers might want to think outside the box when searching for a new host. 

Should show bosses be looking for someone without previous sports broadcasting experience then former The Late Late Show host James Corden might have an outside chance. 

The ex-A League Of Their Own frontman has just finished filming the last-ever episode of Gavin and Stacey, and if he's looking to fill the void left by his loveable character Smithy then the Match of the Day job could be ideal.

Corden is a huge West Ham United supporter and is now back in the UK after some time in America. 

However, it does seem unlikely that he would replace Lineker, and that's matched by his price on betting apps. 

Corden is a massive 100/1 to land the coveted position, the same price as former Pointless co-host Richard Osman and Lineker's pal Piers Morgan, who are triple-figure odds.