Wayne Lineker has revealed he has been left “unable to walk” as he continues to recover in hospital after being rushed into intensive care with what doctors described as “extremely dangerous” pneumonia.

Wayne Lineker has revealed he has been left ‘unable to walk’ and is recovering in hospital after being rushed to intensive care with ‘extremely dangerous’ pneumonia (pictured 2021)

The 63-year-old O Beach owner — and brother of football legend Gary Lineker — shared a surprisingly intimate update on Instagram Stories on Sunday, explaining how a mysterious illness suddenly spiralled into a life-threatening medical emergency.

Wayne, who is based in Ibiza, said he originally believed he had caught COVID before fearing he was suffering a heart attack, only for medics to diagnose severe pneumonia.

Despite showing signs of improvement, Wayne revealed he is still unable to walk and faces months of physiotherapy and rehabilitation before regaining full mobility.

The O Beach owner, who is the brother of footballer and broadcaster Gary Lineker , took to his Instagram Stories with a lengthy health update on Sunday

Pneumonia is a serious chest infection affecting the tiny air sacs in the lungs. These sacs become inflamed and fill with fluid, making breathing difficult and, in severe cases, requiring urgent medical treatment.

Sharing his message with fans, Wayne wrote:
“Hello, my beautiful friends… I did not want to announce this because I know how much love I would receive, and I always feel extremely guilty not being able to reply to everyone.”

He continued the update with a detailed account of how his health deteriorated:

Wayne, who is based in Ibiza, explained how he had fallen ill with what he assumed was COVID, before medics diagnosed pneumonia and he spent ten days in intensive care (pictured in May)

“So two weeks ago I caught a flight from Mauritius to Dubai as I needed to be there for the one-year anniversary party. While I was on that flight, I believe I caught a very bad infection.”

“What I thought at the time was Covid completely knocked me out and I just wanted to get home. I flew home on the Friday and rested. At 3am I woke up and could not walk.”

Fearing the worst, Wayne said:
“I thought I was having a heart attack, so I called my daughter Tia. She was in great despair and called her mum, who came to my house and got me in an ambulance to the hospital.”

He said that despite being on the road to recovery he still cannot walk and would require months of rehabilitation and physiotherapy (pictured earlier this year)

There, doctors diagnosed chronic pneumonia, and Wayne was immediately admitted to intensive care, where he remained for 10 days.

“I’ve now been moved to a respiratory ward,” he wrote. “It’s only now that I feel confident enough in my recovery to let everyone know. I have been speaking and having visits from my family and close friends.”

He added:
“But catching pneumonia at my age is extremely dangerous. I am still in hospital but out of the danger zone and intensive care. I still cannot walk at all and have around two months of rehabilitation and physio ahead of me.”

Meanwhile, in a separate major development for the Lineker family, Wayne’s brother Gary Lineker is set to join Netflix in what insiders describe as an “extraordinarily lucrative” deal. He will host his The Rest Is Football podcast for the streamer during next year’s World Cup from North America, following his exit from the BBC in May after reposting an image related to Zionism that sparked widespread controversy.

The former England striker, 65, had originally been scheduled to anchor the BBC’s World Cup coverage as his final project after 25 years at the corporation, but that plan collapsed after the social-media incident. Though he apologised publicly, Gary confirmed he would step back, calling it “the responsible course of action.”

His podcast — produced by his company Goalhanger Podcasts — previously aired on BBC Sounds but has not had a mainstream platform since his departure.

Sources said Netflix sees the move as a major opportunity to elevate the podcast’s global profile, with talks ongoing about whether co-hosts Alan Shearer and Micah Richards will appear alongside Gary.

Earlier this year, The Rest Is Football earned more than eight million viewers on YouTube alone, with the new Netflix partnership expected to push those numbers even higher