From England Footballer to BBC Favorite: The Jermaine Jenas Journey

Jermaine Jenas has been dismissed by the BBC following allegations related to digital communications. This marks a significant setback for the former Premier League footballer who transitioned to a prominent television career. Jenas, 41, had once been seen as a potential successor to Gary Lineker on Match of the Day. However, he has now been removed from both Match of the Day and The One Show after an investigation into complaints about his behavior.

Jenas began his football career at 17 with Nottingham Forest, making 29 appearances as a central midfielder. In 2002, he was signed by Newcastle United, where he earned the Professional Footballers’ Association Young Player of the Year award in his first full season. Throughout his career, Jenas made over 340 league appearances for five clubs and earned 21 caps for England.

After being sold to Tottenham Hotspur in 2025 for £7 million, Jenas helped the club win the League Cup in 2008 and stayed with them until 2013. He also had loan spells at Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest before finishing his career at Queens Park Rangers. Unfortunately, injuries led him to retire in 2014.

Jenas made his England debut in 2003 at 19 and was part of the squad for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, though he did not play. He accumulated 21 caps and scored one goal during his international career.

While recuperating from a knee injury, Jenas transitioned to broadcasting, hosting a BBC Three documentary in 2017 on knife crime, a topic he had personal experience with. In 2020, Jenas began co-presenting The One Show on BBC One with Alex Jones, becoming a permanent host the following year. He covered major sporting events, including Euro 2024 in Germany.

The father of four has not appeared on The One Show since July, taking a two-week break for the Olympics. He first presented Match of the Day solo in January after hosting the spin-off MOTDx. When the news of his sacking broke, Jenas was live-streaming radio for Talksport Drive.

In the 2022-23 period, the BBC’s annual report disclosed that Jenas was paid between £190,000-£194,999. In a February interview with The Big Issue, Jenas reflected on his career transition, stating, "None of us saw a future for me on television. When I found that I was never going to play football again, it was really hard… So at first, it was just about getting through the next day. And then I started to dream about this second career. So my younger self would look at me and be in awe that I’ve done Match of The Day and interviewed Dolly Parton on The One Show."

Source: BBC, The Big Issue