1:49 pm - June 8, 2026
- Goalhanger becomes Britain’s fastest-growing private company with £37.9 million sales in 2025
- Founded by Gary Lineker and former TV producers, it has a strong following in sports, politics, and history
- Secures investment from The Chernin Group amid a surge of consumer brands on the list
Gary Lineker’s move from television punditry into podcasting has helped turn Goalhanger into Britain’s fastest-growing private company, according to the latest Sunday Times 100 ranking.
Research for the annual list shows the London-based production business posted sales of £37.9 million in 2025, with average annual growth of roughly 321 per cent over the past three years. That was enough to put it top of the table ahead of a wide field of consumer and service businesses.
Founded by Lineker with former television producers Tony Pastor and Jack Davenport, Goalhanger has built a sizeable audience around long-form sports, politics and history programming. Its best-known titles include The Rest Is History, The Rest Is Politics and The Rest Is Football, the last of which is presented by Lineker alongside Micah Richards and Alan Shearer.
The company’s rise comes after Lineker stepped down as presenter of Match of the Day last year, ending a 26-year run at the BBC following controversy over his social media commentary. He has since said he is not competing with the corporation, arguing instead that his World Cup coverage will sit alongside the BBC’s live broadcasts.
Goalhanger’s momentum has also attracted outside backing. In January, the business secured investment from The Chernin Group, the media company led by Peter Chernin, whose credits include films such as Planet of the Apes and The Greatest Showman.
The Sunday Times list also underlined the strength of Britain’s consumer-facing businesses. Health and wellbeing brands Ancient + Brave and Free Soul were both placed in the top 10, each posting average annual sales growth of more than 200 per cent, while other names in the ranking included medical cannabis clinic Mamedica, non-alcoholic drinks maker Mother Root and meal delivery service Simmer Eats.
Second in the list was Lucky Egg, a London boardgame and party-game producer that recorded growth of almost 300 per cent. The ranking also showed a record proportion of companies with female founders, co-founders or chief executives.
Jon Yeomans, business editor of The Sunday Times, said consumer brands had become the dominant theme of the list over the past five years, with food, drink, fashion and beauty companies accounting for nearly half of the entrants. He added that several firms which had appeared before, including Huel and Applied Nutrition, had gone on to expand further through stock market listings or acquisitions by larger international groups.
Source: Noah Wire Services
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/gary-lineker-goalhanger-podcasts-earnings-b2990205.html – Please view link – unable to able to access data
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/gary-lineker-goalhanger-podcasts-earnings-b2990205.html – Gary Lineker’s media enterprise, Goalhanger, has been named Britain’s fastest-growing company, highlighting a successful transition from traditional punditry to the burgeoning podcast industry. Research for the annual Sunday Times 100 revealed the production firm generated £37.9 million in sales in 2025. This impressive figure reflects an average annual sales growth of approximately 321% over the last three years, positioning it as the top performer among all companies scrutinised. Goalhanger was established by the ex-footballer and pundit alongside former television producers Tony Pastor and Jack Davenport, with the trio holding a significant ownership stake. The company is behind some of the UK’s most popular podcast series, including ‘The Rest Is History’, ‘The Rest Is Politics’, and ‘The Rest Is Football’.
- https://businesscloud.co.uk/news/the-sunday-times-100-revealed-for-2026/ – The Sunday Times 100 ranking of the UK’s fastest-growing companies has been revealed for 2026. Gary Lineker’s podcast production and distribution company Goalhanger leads the way with 321% growth on £37.9 million sales. In second, with almost 300% growth on £210m sales, is fellow London firm Lucky Egg, a board games maker. Altrincham legal claims services provider TGG, West Sussex content creator firm Viewture and Hertfordshire-based meal delivery service company Simmer Eats complete the top five. A record 33 of the 100 companies contain a female leader, including Michelle Laithwaite, a BusinessCloud Northern Leader who co-founded Warrington meal delivery service FuelHub with husband James.
- https://podnews.net/update/fastest-growing-goalhanger – Podcast producer Goalhanger has become the fastest-growing company in the UK, according to The Sunday Times 100 ranking. Employing eighty people, the company made £37.9 million (US $50.8 million) in sales in 2025, a 321% average annual growth in the last three years. The company makes the popular ‘The Rest Is…’ series. Confirmation that The Rest Is Football will be available globally on Netflix for the World Cup. Most podcasts on Netflix are just US-only.
- https://anatoliapulse.com/en/business/gary-lineker-s-goalhanger-tops-uk-s-fastest-growing-firms – The media production company behind The Rest is … podcasts achieved £37.9m in sales and 321% average annual growth, topping the Sunday Times ranking of Britain’s quickest-expanding private firms.
- https://podcastingtoday.co.uk/goalhanger-tops-sunday-times-list-of-britains-fastest-growers/ – Goalhanger has been named Britain’s fastest growing private company in the latest Sunday Times 100 rankings. The London based media producer, known for The Rest Is Politics, The Rest Is Football and We Have Ways of Making You Talk, took the top position in the fifth annual list, which highlights the country’s fastest growing entrepreneurial businesses. The company recorded £37.9 million in sales during 2025 and achieved average annual growth of 321.25% over the past three years. According to Goalhanger, its long form audio and video content is expected to reach one billion people this year. Goalhanger was founded by Tony Pastor, former ITV sport controller, alongside audio producer Jack Davenport and former England footballer Gary Lineker. The business employs 80 people at its London headquarters, with the founders retaining a large majority stake.
- https://www.standard.co.uk/business/business-news/gary-lineker-britain-sunday-times-netflix-health-b1284925.html – Gary Lineker’s transition from punditry to podcasting has been paying off thanks to his slice of the firm Goalhanger, which is named Britain’s fastest-growing company in new rankings. The production firm, which produces the popular The Rest Is… series of podcasts, made £37.9 million in sales in 2025, research for the annual Sunday Times 100 found. This amounts to annual sales growth of about 321%, on average in the last three years – the highest of any firm analysed. Goalhanger was created by ex-footballer and pundit Lineker and former TV producers Tony Pastor and Jack Davenport, and the trio own a significant stake in the businesses.
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
10
Notes:
The article was published on June 5, 2026, and reports on the Sunday Times 100 ranking, which was also released on June 5, 2026. No earlier publications of this specific information were found, indicating high freshness. No recycled content or discrepancies were identified.
Quotes check
Score:
10
Notes:
The article does not contain any direct quotes. All information is paraphrased from the Sunday Times 100 ranking and other reputable sources. No unverifiable quotes were found.
Source reliability
Score:
10
Notes:
The article is published by The Independent, a major UK news organisation known for its journalistic standards. The information aligns with data from the Sunday Times 100 ranking, a reputable source. No concerns about source reliability were identified.
Plausibility check
Score:
10
Notes:
The claims about Goalhanger’s sales and growth are consistent with other reputable sources, such as the Anatolia Pulse and PodcastingToday articles. The information is plausible and corroborated by multiple independent sources.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): PASS
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH
Summary:
The article is a timely and accurate report on Goalhanger’s ranking in the Sunday Times 100, supported by multiple reputable sources. No significant concerns were identified in the fact-checking process.
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