Former Premier League referee David Coote has been sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court after he pleaded guilty to making an indecent image of a child following a police investigation
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Former Premier League referee David Coote arrives for sentencing
Former Premier League referee David Coote has been handed a nine month sentence, suspended for two years at Nottingham Crown Court after pleading guilty to making a Category A indecent image of a child.
The 43-year-old was charged on August 12 following an investigation by Nottinghamshire Police. The file was discovered during a forensic search of his electronic equipment which was undertaken as part of the wider investigation. Category A is the most serious category.
The video that was seized lasted two minutes and 11 seconds and is of a 15-year-old boy wearing a school uniform, his sentencing hearing was told. The defendant was interviewed about these matters following the arrest and answered “no comment”.
Coote had initially pleaded not guilty in September at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court, while Nottingham Crown Court heard previously that his “sexual attraction” to children was discovered when the FA launched an investigation into Coote.
Coote was sacked by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) in December 2024 after a video went viral which saw the official make comments about former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp in 2020. The video was unverified but in the FA investigation Coote stated that the video had been taken in his living room in June 2020 with a friend.
During the investigation Coote performed a U-turn and claimed his words did not reflect his true feeling towards the German. He also apologised to Klopp personally.
The PGMOL confirmed that they had terminated Coote’s employment, stating that a thorough investigation concluded he was “in serious breach of the provisions of his employment contract, with his position deemed untenable”.
Earlier that year Coote has also been suspended by UEFA for alleged drug use. Another video emerged allegedly showing Coote using a white powder through a bank note while working at Euro 2024.
This prompted UEFA to launch their own disciplinary proceedings and suspend him from all European officiating duties until June 30 2026.
Coote came out as gay in January and said struggles to hide his sexuality had impacted his behaviour following the surfacing of the videos about Klopp and his drug use.
“My sexuality isn’t the only reason that led me to be in that position. But I’m not telling an authentic story if I don’t say that I’m gay and that I’ve had real struggles with hiding that,” he said.
“I hid my emotions as a young ref and I hid my sexuality as well – a good quality as a referee but a terrible quality as a human being. And that’s led me to a whole course of behaviours.”
There will be more to follow…
