Lineker pledges to host The Rest Is Football in pants if USA win 2026 World Cup

Gary Lineker has vowed to present an episode of The Rest Is Football wearing nothing but American flag pants if the United States lift the 2026 World Cup trophy on home soil.

Speaking on the podcast, the 64-year-old former England striker made the pledge after the USMNT opened the tournament with a strong performance against Paraguay. “What I am going to do is I am going to double down,” Lineker said. “And I’m just going to say that if the USA win the World Cup, I’ll do the last episode of this series in just my pants.”

Guest Niall Horan pressed Lineker for clarification on the style of underwear, asking whether they would be “naked cowboy” pants. Lineker confirmed they would be American flag-themed, leaving little ambiguity about the nature of the forfeit.

Lineker has form in this area. He famously presented Match of the Day in his pants in 2016 after Leicester City won the Premier League title, having made a similar bet when the Foxes’ chances of glory seemed remote.

Despite the USA’s encouraging start to the tournament, Lineker remains sceptical about their chances of going all the way — placing the probability firmly in the realm of the unlikely, even as co-hosts with Mexico and Canada.

Elsewhere in the episode, Lineker offered a perhaps unexpected pick for a dark horse. “I quite like saying that Germany are a dark horse,” he admitted. “Nobody’s talking about them — they didn’t get through the group stage in the last two World Cups. Are they now the kind of country that you go, actually, if they get to the quarters, they’re actually doing really well?” Lineker suggested the Germans could yet spring a surprise and go deep into the tournament.

The 2026 World Cup, expanded to 48 teams, got under way last Thursday with co-hosts Mexico beating South Africa 2-0. Early results have thrown up several notable moments, including Japan coming from a goal down twice to draw 2-2 with the Netherlands, and both Egypt and Cape Verde holding Belgium and Spain respectively.