Richard Keys breaks silence on beIN Sports exit and drops hint on next job
Richard Keys has opened up on his plans once he leaves beIN Sports and Qatar after the end of the 2025/26 season, following reports he could retire from broadcasting
Richard Keys has denied reports that he will retire from broadcasting after losing his job at beIN Sports at the end of the season. Keys and his long-term sidekick Andy Gray are leaving the Qatari broadcaster after 13 years, but it is yet to be announced what they will do next.
The presenter and pundit duo moved to the Middle Eastern country in the wake of their scandalous exit from Sky Sports and the UK in 2011. They were forced out of the company after a clip was leaked of them making sexist remarks about assistant referee Sian Massey – an incident Keys later claimed was a “set-up” designed by ‘dark forces’ to force them out.
Keys, 68, and Gray, 70, subsequently found a new home in Qatar with beIN Sports, where they have fronted the channel’s Premier League coverage since 2013. However, it emerged last week that beIN had decided not to renew their contracts and would instead refresh its output ahead of the 2026/27 season.
It has been reported that Keys will move back to the UK to live with his much younger partner, Lucie Rose, whom he married in 2023. Meanwhile, it had been suggested that Keys could retire from broadcasting following the end of his contract with beIN.
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! Latest news, analysis and much more on Mirror Football’s Facebook page
READ MORE: Eni Aluko fires back at Laura Woods and makes Ian Wright allegations as row gets personalREAD MORE: Jack Grealish posts cruel injury update from hospital bed as Erling Haaland responds
However, the man himself has now denied that suggestion. At the bottom of his weekly blog about VAR and the Premier League, he added: “There has been no fall out between myself and beINSPORTS. I’ve loved every minute of my time in Qatar – a country that means the world to me.
“I have a deep affection for it, but it’s time for me to move on. I’m not retiring – simply changing course. There’s a whole lot more to come yet.”
According to the Telegraph, Keys will move in with his wife, who is 32 years his junior, upon his return to the UK. The couple had affair while Keys’ wife of 34 years was recovering from cancer, prompting his ex-wife Julia to file for divorce in 2016. Keys has since stated that Julia “had been remission for seven years” when their marriage collapsed.
However, Julia wrote in her book The MANScript in 2018: “Richard’s affair didn’t just devastate my world, but the world of our children Jemma and Josh too. It is only now, two years on, that he has admitted he did have an affair with Lucie, as well as acknowledging his deceit and the damage it has caused.”
They got married in Devon three years ago and have been conducting a long distance relationship ever since, with Keys living in Doha, the capital of Qatar.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
