Former footballer Jermaine Jenas has been sacked by the BBC over allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
Read latest: Jenas admits to sending ‘inappropriate messages’
While he was on air on a radio show on Thursday, the BBC announced the One Show co-host and Match Of The Day pundit, 41, was “no longer part of our presenting line-up”.
The news of his sacking broke moments after Jenas started presenting a three-hour drive-time programme on talkSPORT with fellow former footballer Jermaine Pennant.
On Friday, Jenas apologised to his family, friends and colleagues, as well as the women he had messaged.
He had previously said he would instruct lawyers and that there were “two sides” to every story.
But in an interview with The Sun, the former footballer said: “I’m not proud of what I wrote and what I said. This is all on me and I fully accept there is a level of responsibility that needs to be upheld when you’re a member of the BBC.”
Jenas also insisted “nothing physical ever happened,” that he did “nothing illegal,” and argued the messages were with “two consenting adults”.
He added however that “I have only myself to blame,” and said: “I’m the married one, I’m at fault.”
BBC News reported Jenas’s contract was terminated earlier this week due to alleged issues relating to workplace behaviour.
The news was a shock and a serious blow to a promising broadcasting career, with Jenas widely tipped as a future presenter of Match Of The Day after Gary Lineker retires before the scandal.
His presenting started on sport programmes but he became a well-known face on screen beyond his footballing background.
Below, we look at Jenas’s career so far.
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England appearances and solid club career
Born in 1983, Jenas started his football career at Nottingham Forest – where he made his first team debut aged 17 – before moving to Newcastle United in 2002.
He spent most of his career at Tottenham Hotspur, making 155 appearances and scoring 21 goals from 2005 to 2013, before signing for Queen’s Park Rangers.
Jenas also made 21 appearances for the England national team and scored one goal – against Switzerland in a friendly at Wembley Stadium in 2008.
He announced his retirement from football in 2016, having not played since a knee injury in training in April 2014.
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Jenas retired in 2016 but had not played since 2014 after a knee injury in training. Pic: Rex Features
Rising star at the BBC
Jenas started a career as a football pundit after his contract with Queen’s Park Rangers expired in 2014.
He made his first appearance for ITV Sport as an analyst for the Europa League.
He started making regular guest appearances on the BBC’s Match Of The Day and BT Sports the same year.
Jenas earned between £190,000 and £194,999 at the BBC for his work on the FA Cup, Match Of The Day and the World Cup, according to official figures published last year.
The married father-of-four joined The One Show in 2020 as a stand-in co-host following the departure of Matt Baker, and he was made a permanent fixture the following year.
Jenas was a co-host on The One Show with Alex Jones and Roman Kemp. Pic: PA
‘There’s two sides to every story’
BBC News reported Jenas’s contract was terminated this week over alleged issues with workplace behaviour, with allegations involving unsolicited digital communications, such as texts.
It was reported the allegations were raised with the corporation a few weeks ago. The BBC announced Jenas’s departure on Thursday but didn’t give further details of the allegations.
While live on talkSPORT as the reports emerged, Jenas was asked about the allegations but declined to answer.
“Look, I can’t really talk about it,” he said. “I, as you can probably see, I am not happy about it. But currently, as it stands, I’m going to have to let the lawyers deal with it.
“You know, there’s two sides to every story, as we know. So, that’s all I can say right now.”
A spokesperson for talkSPORT later said the station was “made aware of a breaking news story involving Jermaine Jenas as he went on air for a one-off presenting slot on talkSPORT Drive”.
A statement added: “We made a decision – with Jermaine – that he should continue to present the show.”
They also said there are “no plans for Jermaine to broadcast as a presenter on talkSPORT in the immediate future”.
His agency MC Saatchi said it no longer represents him following the news of his sacking.
TNT Sports said it would not comment on Jenas’s employment with the BBC. It is understood he is not scheduled to appear on TNT’s channels for a number of weeks.