The Professional Game Match Official Limited (PGMOL) announced this afternoon that referee David Coote’s employment would be terminated immediately after it was confirmed that he was involved in a “serious breach of the provisions of his employment contract, with his position deemed untenable”.

BREAKING: Referee David Coote sacked by PGMOL with immediate effect 🚨 pic.twitter.com/f2dKaFM0zr

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 9, 2024

This was after Coote was caught last month making derogatory comments about Liverpool and their former manager, Jurgen Klopp. This video, as well as others released, also caused speculation about the Premier League referee potentially being under the influence of illegal substances. Ironically, the last game he refereed was Liverpool vs. Aston Villa on November 9th, exactly one month ago. But what does this mean for PGMOL and all referees going forward?

Referees have always faced abuse, it’s almost part of the game but with the rise in social media, replay clips and the introduction of VAR, it seems that the ones supposedly in charge of the game are under more scrutiny than ever.

There have been numerous human-caused errors made by VAR operators in the past year. Now that one of the Premier League’s most highly regarded referees has been caught acting unprofessionally, there will be even more distrust in those officiating the world’s most-watched league.

The PGMOL has sacked Premier League official David Coote with immediate effect. pic.twitter.com/HgirOLcAKP

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) December 9, 2024

It also comes as a surprise that Coote navigated a situation so poorly that he was caught on camera happy to voice his strong opinions on people he worked with. Especially as it was recorded in recent years.

There is the other side of the argument is that Coote is only human and therefore it is no surprise that he has opinions, but to allow himself to be on video knowing it is eventually bound to get released is a mistake he will continue to regret.

David Coote’s career, certainly at any significant level, is obviously over. He wasn’t a particularly good referee but it looks like he needs help. And some new friends. This is a personal and professional humiliation for him and also deeply damaging for the refereeing community.…

— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) November 13, 2024

If another situation like this were to occur, it could result in the whole of the PGMOL facing an investigation into their recruitment process. Football could also begin to look for alternatives to human referees that may involve automated technology or even if it continues to develop, artificial intelligence. As seen with VAR and goal-line technology currently.

“Computer vision will be more and more effective in the next few years and the number of cameras on the pitch will only increase,” Aldo Comi, chief executive of leading global football analytics provider Soccerment, told the PA news agency.

“The amount of data that is tagged and the quality of the models that are trained with that data will increase exponentially and thanks to that you will have AI models that can make refereeing decisions on the back of what they see on the pitch.”

The idea of referees being replaced completely is still far away, but if the current officials continue to display a lack of competence and bad judgment it could be a scary future change. Whether this would be a positive decision or not will only be revealed as time passes.

AI is transforming sports officiating — faster, fairer, and more accurate than ever. 🏃‍♂️

Here’s how AI technology is changing the game:

1⃣ Split-second decisions: Cameras now process 40k frames per second, determining winners in milliseconds. From automated offsides in football… pic.twitter.com/wQtosdTq6s

— Alexis Goncalves (@AlexisGoncalves) December 4, 2024