How Lineker and Neville became rival media moguls
Like Neville, Lineker's network has developed spin-offs, but the Goalhanger brand extends well beyond sport. At the time of writing, its various podcasts dominate the top 40 of the Spotify podcast charts with its shows on politics (1st, 8th and 11th), history (6th), entertainment (9th) football (13th), and science (38th).
Like Neville, Lineker's network has developed spin-offs, but the Goalhanger brand extends well beyond sport. At the time of writing, its various podcasts dominate the top 40 of the Spotify podcast charts with its shows on politics (1st, 8th and 11th), history (6th), entertainment (9th) football (13th), and science (38th). The Overlap's Stick to Football is at 17th.
On Apple's charts, Goalhanger enjoyed an even tighter grip with the top four podcasts. "I don't think we're rivals necessarily, but I've no problem if people want to think that," says Scott Melvin, who co-founded and runs The Overlap alongside Neville. "They've done unbelievably well," he says when asked about Goalhanger.
"They're market leaders in the podcast space, whereas we're a 'video-first' business. They were 'eyes optional', and now pivoting into some video. We've always said we're 'ears optional'.
" Lineker's Goalhanger co-founder Tony Pastor agrees that the two companies "have some similarities but in many ways we're very different". "We've taken a broader approach in terms of genres," he explained. "Our biggest show in the UK is The Rest Is Politics, and our biggest show worldwide is The Rest Is History.