Gary Lineker will soon be swapping the studio for the dugout after being confirmed as a coach in the newly-launched Baller League appearing alongside former Premier League stars and viral celebrities.
Baller League has skyrocketed in popularity since being launched in Germany at the start of the year by Mats Hummels and former Arsenal star Lukasz Podolksi and is now set to kick-off in England and the United States, with Lineker one star heavily involved.
Described as ‘a new form of forward-thinking and hyper-exciting football’, Baller League is a competitive six-a-side football league that combines the traditional game with new rules.
Lineker – who will leave Match of the Day at the end of the season – has been named as a team manager in the competition, with fellow presenters Alan Shearer and Micah Richards also taking on coaching positions.
But the 63-year-old might not be the biggest name with a host of viral social media celebrities stealing the limelight and capturing the attention of millions of football-mad fans around the world.
Mail Sport delves into some of the biggest names Lineker will be appearing alongside as the celebrated former England striker joins forces with YouTubers KSI, Chunkz and Angry Ginge for the brand-new tournament.
Gary Lineker is set to be a manager in the brand-new football competition Baller League
The Match of the Day host will join forces with several YouTubers for Baller League
KSI: Real name (Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji)
The celebrity who arguably has a bigger cult following than Lineker himself has been recruited as president of the UK League, while fellow viral star IShowSpeed will lead up the US version.
KSI has become a household name since he first burst onto the screens of video game-loving teenagers in the 2010s and has gone on to achieve global success in music, boxing and massive entrepreneurial projects helping him reach multi-millionaire success.
The 31-year-old’s most celebrated business venture is his sports drink company PRIME that he co-founded with fellow viral celebrity Logan Paul and has gone on to form official partnerships with Arsenal and the UFC.
PRIME surpassed £900m in sales during its first full year of trading – although has been the subject of several lawsuits – with KSI becoming a global icon in the sports and social media industry where he is now one of the most recognised YouTubers.
He is still best known for his YouTube videos where KSI is a key figure in the Sidemen group formed with a host of other collaborators in 2013 and now boasts 21.8m subscribers, while KSI’s main channel has over 16million subscribers.
The group are best known for their crazy challenges that often see them travel the world and spend thousands of pounds on outlandish and often hilarious videos that attract a massive audience.
KSI is also one of the original founders behind the Misfits Boxing brand that often promotes crossover bouts between former professional fighters and celebrity personalities with the YouTuber himself fighting at various events.
His most notable bout came against Tommy Fury in October last year when the younger brother of former heavyweight world champion, Tyson, eventually reigned victorious after the fight went to a decision.
KSI (left) co-founded the drink company PRIME with Logan Paul (right) and they subsequently struck up a partnership with Arsenal
KSI fought Tyson Fury’s younger brother Tommy last year and lost a narrow points decision
KSI has also enjoyed tremendous success as a musician and music producer, with his second solo album All Over The Place reaching UK No1 in 2021 and the London-born personality also winning several awards including the BRIT Billion Award for surpassing one billion UK streams of his various tracks.
KSI has also showcased his real-life football skills on various occasions at charity football matches with the Sidemen group recently selling out Wembley for one upcoming game.
KSI has also had success as a musician, as he achieved a No1 album back in 2021
Chunkz: Real name (Amin Mohamed)
Chunkz is another YouTuber that has garnered a massive online following and is well-known to football fans after appearing in the annual Soccer Aid match on multiple occasions.
Similar to KSI, he has celebrated viral fame by helping found the online streaming group Beta Squad that has over 10million YouTube subscribers and garners massive views by doing a variety of online challenges and competitions.
Chunkz was born in London by Somali parents who immigrated to England in the 1980s, with the youngest of five siblings only starting his online video journey in 2015 after previously spending time working in a cinema.
His passion for creating online content also saw him form a collaboration with fellow YouTuber Yung Filly who is currently facing rape allegations in Australia.
Chunkz is also a massive Arsenal supporter and his online personality has even seen him gain presenting opportunities on the likes of Sky Sports and other notable broadcasters with him also winning several awards.
Earlier in the year he took part in Match for Hope, a football charity game hosted in Qatar and is also a regular feature in the Sidemen charity matches alongside KSI.
His new role within the Baller League will see Chunkz be the livestream host where he will present for each weekly round of fixtures with the action set to get underway in March next year and finishing in May when a winner will be crowned.
YouTube sensation Chunkz has taken part in multiple Soccer Aid matches for charity
He has collaborated with Yung Filly (left) in the past, but Yung Filly is now facing rape allegations in Australia
Angry Ginge: Real name (Morgan Burtwistle)
The Salford-born content creator is a relatively new and rising online star but is quickly becoming a fan favourite and amassing massive popularity especially amongst football supporters.
Best known by his viral name ‘Angry Ginge’ the 23-year-old is best known for comedy, gaming, and football content with his official YouTube account now fast approaching over 1 million subscribers.
His EA FC videos are amongst his most popular where the charismatic figure has formed various Pro Clubs teams on the game with the likes of celebrated rapper Aitch and Man United legend Wayne Rooney even joining him in online matches.
Angry Ginge (pictured) has shot to fame on YouTube thanks largely to his gaming content
Through his gaming, Angry Ginge has even struck up an online friendship with Wayne Rooney
He has also appeared in hilarious videos alongside the likes of McLaren Formula One star Lando Norris with the pair spending a day in Monaco together and the racecar driver showing Angry Ginge what life is like as an F1 superstar.
Taking a fresh and original approach to creating online content has also resulted in several sponsorship deals with Angry Ginge facing JD Sports’ social campaign for their coverage of Euro 2024.
A self-professed United fanatic, he has also struck up relationships with current players Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot and Antony.
His role in Baller League will see the viral social media star take up a manager’s role with one of the entered teams.
