Gary Lineker at World Cup: His ‘unusual’ relationship with ex-wife Danielle Bux and her husband

Gary Lineker is one of the most popular, recognisable and well-paid TV presenters in the country and we will be seeing a lot more of him over the next month or so at the World Cup in Qatar.

But his life has also been touched by the upset of two divorces, including his second marriage to Welsh model Danielle Bux.

Lineker, 61 , and actress Danielle, now 42 , got divorced in January, 2016, after seven years together. They had initially met on a blind date arranged by a mutual friend.

The couple reportedly split because Danielle – who has a daughter from a previous relationship – was desperate to have another child, but father-of-four Lineker felt he was too old to start a new family.

Lineker has four sons from his marriage to first wife Michelle Cockayne, to whom he was married from 1986 to May 2006. They are George, 30, Harry, 28, Tobias, 25, and Angus, 24.

Since splitting from Lineker, Danielle has had another child, four-year-old daughter Romy, with American entertainment lawyer Nate Greenwald, who she married in 2019.

Danielle relocated to Los Angeles shortly after splitting with the former England footballer to pursue an acting career.

The pair have maintained a close relationship since the split, with Lineker revealing he frequently socialises with Greenwald on his trips to visit Danielle in California. Lineker and Danielle also speak on a daily basis via phone or text.

“He’s not got a jealous bone in his body,” Gary told the Radio Times. “We get on really well. We go out for dinner when I’m in LA.

“It might be unusual and people might go, ‘That’s weird’ but, frankly, I don’t care. What is normal?

“Is it better to get divorced and end up fighting, screaming and shouting? Or is it better to get on if you can?”

Lineker and Danielle actually opted against involving divorce lawyers when they split, instead filling out all the required forms together.

The friendship Lineker has maintained with Cardiff-born Danielle extends to her first daughter, who she had at the age of 22.

Lineker describes Ella as his step-daughter and still visits her in the US. Just last week he posted a photo of her on Instagram, saying: “Happy birthday to my wonderful step-daughter. Can’t believe you’re 20, Ella. I can believe there are chips!”

Lineker’s step daughter, Ella (Image: Gary Lineker, Instagram)

She is now at university in Boston studying political science.

The Match of the Day host, who is the highest paid presenter at the BBC with a salary of £1.36 million, is happy on his own these days, recently revealing he’s “not that a**ed about having sex”.

The Express report him saying: “I last went on a date a few months ago.

“Every now and again you might meet someone — but obviously not over the past couple of years because of the pandemic — but I’ve always found it quite difficult.

“Occasionally I have a date, but then I’ll go and make it clear I’m not interested. So I feel bad. I don’t want to lead anyone up the garden path. It sounds selfish, but I’m really happy on my own.

“I’ve got good friends, I’ve got my kids, I like cooking, and I just don’t want any more sleeping with someone again.

“When you get a bit older, that urge fades, your testosterone levels drop. It’s just not that important.”

He added to The Sun: “I like the fun of flirting, going on dates, kissing and cooking for someone, but that’s about as far as I want to take it.

“I’m not sure I’m asexual as such — no matter how old you are, a beautiful woman is a beautiful woman — but I just genuinely can’t be a**ed now.”

Lineker has no intention of marrying again, describing the prospect of a third wife as “pointless”.

“It’s just a contract and it’s so easy to get married and so difficult to get unmarried,” he said.

As for Danielle, she continues to work in the modelling and acting world in the US.

Her most recent credits include the film The Wedding Year in 2019 and One Thing Left To D o in 2017.

Danielle previously made her stage debut in Calendar Girls at the Bristol Hippodrome in January 2011 and has appeared in “Responsible Other”, a play by Melanie Spencer. She also appeared in BBC One’s Silent Witness in 2013, a feature film called Kicking Off by director Matt Wilde and an NBC series called Aquarius.

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