cheque mate
Alan Shearer reveals first ever football pay cheque and Newcastle legend ‘blew the lot’ immediately
Gary Lineker recalled how much he got in his first pay packet... and how he kept the bit meant for his mum
ALAN SHEARER has lifted the lid on the first thing he brought with his first ever football pay cheque.
Premier League and Newcastle legend Shearer, 53, was appearing on when he was asked by Gary Lineker when he realised he was "living the good life" as a footballer.
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Shearer said: "It has to be my first ever professional contract when I was 17.
"I signed a three-year deal and got a £6,000 signing-on fee and I went and blew the lot on a brand-new car.
"£3,395 - that's what I got after tax.
"I still remember it now, it was my first one. Red Escort 1300L - B93XHT. And I thought I was rich because I got my first new car."
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Shearer's deal came when he was with Southampton, and he had previously recalled how his first pro deal was triggered by scoring a hat-trick against Arsenal on his full debut.
Speaking back in September, Shearer had said: "My first one [contract] was at Southampton.
"As soon as I’d scored my hat-trick, four days later I signed a pro contract.
"And bare in mind I had been as a youth player on £27.50 per week for a couple of years.
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"When I signed my pro contract a few days later I had suddenly gone from £27 per week to £225 a week and I got a £6,000 signing on fee."
Lineker, 63, had revealed he had also splashed out on a car as his first big purchase after signing his first pro deal.
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He said: "For me, it was the same thing – I got a little Alfa Romeo, but I can't remember the number plate!
"I think most of us, the first big thing we spend money on is our car. Those were the days."
Like Shearer, it was a topic the ex-Leicester and Tottenham star had previously spoken about, though the BBC Sport presenter had a far more modest pay cheque than his Euro 2024 colleague.
My first pay cheque was £16 in an envelope with a separate envelope with a fiver in it for my mum.
Gary Lineker
He had said: "My first pay cheque was £16 in an envelope with a separate envelope with a fiver in it for my mum.
"Because I was a local lad, most of the players that had joined the club came from far away so they were all in digs so therefore they got all the food free.
"So you got an extra £5 if you were local, but my mum never took it."
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BBC and ITV's Euro 2024 line up in full
Here's how each channel will line-up:
BBC presenters:
Gary Lineker, Alex Scott, Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman
ITV presenters:
Mark Pougatch and Laura Woods
BBC pundits:
Alan Shearer, Micah Richards, Rio Ferdinand, Ellen White, Frank Lampard, Ashley Williams, Wayne Rooney, Joe Hart, Cesc Fabregas, Thomas Frank, David Moyes, Rachel Corsie and James McFadden
ITV pundits:
Ian Wright, Roy Keane, Gary Neville, Karen Carney, Graeme Souness, Eni Aluko, Ange Postecoglou, Danny Rohl and Christina Unkel
BBC commentators:
Guy Mowbray, Robyn Cowen, Vicki Sparks, Steve Wilson, Steve Bower and Jonathan Pearce
ITV commentators:
Sam Matterface, Clive Tyldesley, Seb Hutchinson, Pien Meulensteen and Joe Speight
BBC co-commentators:
Danny Murphy, Martin Keown, Jermaine Jenas and James McFadden
ITV co-commentators:
Lee Dixon, Ally McCoist and Andros Townsend
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