Gary Lineker’s Goalhanger named UK’s fastest-growing business
Goalhanger, the podcast company co-founded by Gary Lineker, tops the Sunday Times growth ranking after sales jumped to £37.9m.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
Goalhanger’s rise reflects how podcasting has become a real media business, not just a niche format. The company says subscriptions, live events and a growing audience helped drive its rapid expansion.
Goalhanger is like a toy shop that started with one popular toy, then kept adding new ones, opened events, and got people to pay for extras. Because lots of people listen, the shop grew very fast.
Analysis
What happened
Goalhanger, the podcast company co-founded by Gary Lineker, was named Britain’s fastest-growing business in the latest Sunday Times ranking of private companies. The company reported £37.9m in sales in 2025 and said its average annual growth rate over the past three years was 321%.
Why it grew
The business sits behind a cluster of successful podcasts, including The Rest is History, The Rest is Entertainment, The Rest is Football and The Rest is Politics. The article says those shows now have more than 750 million listeners combined. Goalhanger has also widened its income beyond advertising by pushing paid subscriptions and live events; in January it said it had reached 250,000 paid subscribers for the first time.
The article says reports put the subscription revenue at about £15m a year. That gives the company a more stable base than a pure ad-supported model.
Ownership and expansion
Goalhanger was formed in 2018 by Tony Pastor, Gary Lineker and former journalist Jack Davenport. Lineker still holds at least a 25% stake, according to Companies House filings cited in the piece. The company also drew outside money: The Chernin Group bought a minority stake, and a partner from that firm joined the board.
Goalhanger has also expanded beyond audio. Netflix agreed in December to broadcast The Rest is Football during the World Cup, in a deal reported to be worth £14m. The company has since launched a venture capital arm focused on investing in creator-led media businesses.
Broader context
The Sunday Times list found the top 100 fastest-growing private companies together generated £4bn in sales and employed 13,700 people. Goalhanger’s performance puts podcasting and creator-led media in the same conversation as more traditional growth sectors.
Key points
- Goalhanger was named Britain’s fastest-growing business in the Sunday Times ranking.
- The company reported £37.9m in sales in 2025 and 321% average annual growth over three years.
- Its podcasts now have more than 750 million listeners combined, according to the article.
- Paid subscriptions and live events have become important revenue drivers.
- The company has also attracted outside investment and expanded into creator-led media deals.
If Goalhanger keeps turning listeners into paying subscribers and event audiences, it could keep building a steadier business than one that depends only on ads. The Netflix deal and minority investment also suggest the company is becoming more valuable and more widely distributed.
The growth story depends on keeping a very large audience engaged across a small number of flagship shows. If listening falls, subscriber growth slows, or live events do not scale as hoped, the business could lose momentum quickly.
