Simon Cowell will announce his exit from American Idol after the end of the upcoming season sometime in the next few weeks — if the word of the tough-talkin’ mogul’s brother is to be believed.

British media personality Tony Cowell spilled the beans on his brother’s upcoming exit from America’s most-watched program during his weekly radio show, Fame Game, on Sunday. Tony, 59, is extremely close to Simon and co-wrote Simon’s memoirs, I Don’t Mean to be Rude, but . . .

According to recent reports, FOX is close to signing Cowell to a new deal that would bring his British reality talent competition The X Factor to Las Vegas in less than a year.

“Meanwhile, Simon prepares for a new season of ‘Idol,’ or should I say his last season of ‘Idol’ — OK, I will [say it], because it is,” Tony Cowell said in a podcast of the show. “As I sit here in the sunny Caribbean with my family, a press statement is being prepared which will confirm what everyone expected: Simon will leave ‘Idol’ at the end of 2010 to concentrate on bringing the American version of ‘The X Factor’ to US TV in 2011.”