Football legend Gary Lineker and his brother, nightclub mogul Wayne Lineker, were once extremely close, however over the years rumours have speculated that the brothers fell out. What caused this rift between them and are they on speaking terms now? Thrillz investigates.
Wayne Lineker is the international club tycoon who is the younger brother of England football legend Gary Lineker.
Born just two years apart in Leicester, England, the brothers grew up playing football together for their hometown club Leicester City.
The footballer VS the party boy
Gary and Wayne went down two totally different career paths. While Gary went on to have a professional career in football, firstly playing for teams such as Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs, then going on to play for England in the World Cup where he became known as one of the greatest English strikers of all time.
Eventually he worked his way to where he is today, as host of Match of the Day where he is currently the top paid presenters at the BBC, having earned a whopping £1.75 million in 2019/20.
Wayne opted in favour of the party lifestyle, opening a string of beach clubs and nightclubs instead, most notoriously, O Beach (formerly Ocean Beach) and Lineker’s Bar.
Wayne’s nightclub empire began in 1988 with his own brand of sports bars, Lineker’s Bar. The original Lineker’s Bar was in Tenerife, but he now has branches all across Europe including the Costa del Sol, Majorca and Puerto Banus as well as in Ibiza.
Related reading: Are Wayne Lineker And Chloe Ferry Engaged
It’s his newer beach clubs, O Beach, which you can find in Ibiza and most recently, Dubai, that have soared in popularity over the last few years. With a huge celebrity following and VIP tables that can go up to an eye watering €5000 during special events, it’s no wonder that Wayne is said to be worth a staggering £30 million.
According to The Mirror, the brothers used to speak every single day over the phone and also play golf twice a week before the pair became involved in a painful feud that dragged in other members of their family.
A falling out
News of the brothers falling out broke when Wayne gave an interview to The Sun back in 2015. Wayne claimed his relationship with Gary suffered a “breakdown” once the Match of the Day host got married to his ex wife Danielle Bux in 2009. He told The Sun: “In my opinion Danielle cost me my relationship with my brother. Sadly Gary is no longer a part of my life.”
Apparently Wayne was confused when the weekly phone calls and visits from his brother stopped.
He continued: “Within a year we had spent less time talking than we ever had before. It was like an itch I couldn’t scratch and I couldn’t understand why our contact had fizzled out.”
After Gary’s split from ex wife Danielle Bux it was claimed that certain members of his family were glad he had parted company from her, however these claims were later denied.
From that point on, Wayne or Gary never publicly addressed whether they were feuding or had fallen out and so there was much speculation that the pair were indeed not on speaking terms.
Back on good terms?
However that speculation was put to bed last year when Wayne dedicated an Instagram post to his older brother Gary, on his 60th birthday. He captioned the post: “Happy 60th birthday big bro… I will always be proud of you. Love you lots.”
This Instagram post may have been the very beginning of the mending of their relationship.
There is more piece of evidence that makes it seem as though the brothers are on good terms. Wayne recently appeared on Channel 4’s Celebs Go Gating back in January and on the show he referred to his brother Gary as his “secret hero”.
Celebs Go Dating receptionist Tom Read Wilson told Wayne he thinks both Gary and himself have a “gentle” spirit.
“Isn’t Gary the only footballer who has never received a red or a yellow card?” he said.
Wayne replied with a compliment to his brother, saying: “That’s very true. He’s always been a secret hero of mine really, I look up to Gary.”
According to The Mirror, the brothers are now on talking terms, although neither of them have acknowledged this publicly.
Currently, Wayne is back in Ibiza with the reopening of his famous beach club O Beach after being closed for months due to the pandemic. He was seen partying it up with fellow Celebs Go Dating star and rumoured flame Chloe Ferry.