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The possibility of Gary Lineker appearing on screen in just his underwear could become a reality if a specific scenario unfolds at the 2026 World Cup.
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The 48-team competition began last Thursday, with joint-hosts Mexico defeating South Africa 2-0.
Thus far, the tournament has been marked by surprising performances from underdogs, as seen in the determination shown by Egypt and Cape Verde in their draws against Belgium and Spain today.
In other matches, the USA delivered a remarkably strong opening performance against Paraguay, while Japan stunned the Netherlands yesterday by coming back from a goal down twice to secure a 2-2 draw.
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The single condition required for Gary Lineker to appear in just his pants at the 2026 World Cup, as discussed on The Rest Is Football
So, what is the one event that Gary Lineker needs to witness to bring back his pants-wearing podcast style at the 2026 World Cup?
The former England international has a history of this, having previously done so on Match of the Day to celebrate Leicester’s title win.
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The USA kicked off their tournament stronger than many football fans worldwide might have anticipated, yet the notion that they could win the competition remains a distant prospect.
That is the view of everyone except Donald Trump, the USMNT, and the American public... but Gary Lineker remains unconvinced.
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Speaking on The Rest Is Football, Lineker made another pants-related promise, this time conditional on the USMNT winning the 2026 World Cup.
"What I am going to do is I am going to double down. 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," said the 65-year-old.
When asked for clarification on the type of pants by guest star Niall Horan, who inquired if they would be "naked cowboy," Lineker confirmed they would be American flag pants.
The 65-year-old also named his 'dark horse' for the tournament—a nation that would not typically fit that description.
"I quite like saying that Germany are a dark horse," confessed Lineker. "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?" asked Lineker, who believes the Germans could spring a surprise tournament victory.
Kedar Bayley is a trained journalist specialising in culture reporting. As a fan of Liverpool FC, he writes on the Reds often. Knowledgeable about all things sports, cinema and television, you can find his words in Screen International, FourFourTwo, Manchester Evening News and more.
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