The David Coote Controversy: Why PGMOL Must Do Better

The David Coote Controversy: Why PGMOL Must Do Better

Former Premier League referee David Coote has pleaded not guilty to a Category A charge of making an indecent image of a child.

David Coote has been charged that he made one indecent video of a child in Category A on January 2, 2020.

Category A is the most serious category and typically shows young children being raped or sexually abused by adults pic.twitter.com/lWMDVQnR67

— indykaila News (@indykaila) September 10, 2025

Coote, 43, entered his not guilty plea on Thursday, 10th September at Nottingham Magistrates Court, with the case now set to be heard at Nottingham Crown Court on October 9th.

He has been released on conditional bail, prohibiting him from having any contact with any unsupervised child aged under 16.

The charge is high stakes: Category A relates to the most severe classification of child abuse imagery under UK law. It follows a string of controversies surrounding the former referee that had already ended his career.

He was suspended by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) on November 11th of last year after a video emerged of him calling former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp a “German c***” and “f***ing arrogant.”

Just three days later, The Sun published a separate video of Coote sniffing white powder through a rolled-up bank note. The Sun claim that the video was taken on July 6th 2024, a day after Coote was the assistant VAR for the European Championship Quarter-Final match between France and Portugal.

Oh no, David Coote caught doing cocaine, he's really is finished as a referee!

The video is apparently from the 2024 Euros where he was officiating 😳pic.twitter.com/OEnrTMtSu1

— Football Hub (@FootbalIhub) November 13, 2024

His contract was terminated on December 9th 2024, by PGMOL for a “serious breach” of contract, and that was followed up in February of this year when he was banned from officiating any UEFA matches for 16 months due to “bringing the sport of football, and UEFA in particular, into disrepute.”

🚨 Referee David Coote has been sacked, PGMOL confirms.

“Actions were found to be in serious breach of the provisions of his employment contract, with his position deemed untenable. Supporting David Coote continues to be important to us and we remain committed to his welfare”. pic.twitter.com/FW8g2H2la0

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 9, 2024

Delayed Action

Before any legal verdict has been delivered, there are several failings that are evident. First is that there is either delayed action or an immense oversight by the PGMOL. The original video of Coote brandishing Jurgen Klopp as a “German C***” was filmed in the summer of 2022. This suggests that internal control failed to detect—or chose not to act—on highly damaging material that could ultimately leave the PGMOL in a position of compromised credibility.

Transparency

For football fans, managers, players and the referees community, confidence in match officials depends on integrity, impartiality and the utmost trust. We are currently living through an era where the trust we put on referees is at an all-time low. When videos, such as Coote’s, surface, that credibility drops even further. Coote’s comment on Klopp’s nationality added an aggravated dimension, which underscored how much weight a referee's word holds.

Reputational Damage

There has been reputational damage to the referee’s union. PGMOL, UEFA, and the FA are all implicated to a certain degree. The way Coote’s dismissal, ban, investigations, and legal disputes have played out suggests a weakness in how referee misconduct is governed, policed, and publicly answered.

Support

Following his dismissal by the PGMOL, The Sun broke an exclusive interview with Coote where he came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community.

Coote claimed that he “hid his sexuality” in the fear that he would “receive abuse for being gay.”

There is a clear duty for governing bodies to protect and support their officials' welfare, but that must be consistent with enforcing the highest standards of conduct.

Former Premier League referee David Coote has released a statement in his first interview since being sacked by the PGMOL. pic.twitter.com/1ny3f9PjGF

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 27, 2025

Learning From Precedent

Once the legal process allows, PGMOL must review this case. Whether Coote is guilty or not, this allows an unprecedented chance for them to change their code of conduct, training, and discipline to ensure that this does not happen again.

Whilst Coote’s case shows a human being behind the scandals, governing bodies should proactively support referees’ mental health, identity and personal issues. This must not be seen as excusing any wrongdoing, but in understanding how the high-pressure lifestyle of a referee can lead to behaviour—such as drug abuse—that would later lead to misconduct.

Moving Forwad

As of today, Coote’s legal case has just begun. But this scandal clearly reveals serious failings. PGMOL must do better. This case now means that it is bigger than one individual. The credibility of English refereeing relies on reform and the utmost transparency moving forward.