Former Premier League referee David Coote has been sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for two years, at Nottingham Crown Court. Mr Coote was also placed on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years and sentenced to a 10-year sexual harm prevention order with 150 hours of unpaid work.
The 43-year-old was charged with making indecent images of children in February 2025, classified as a category A video, the most serious incident, and recovered by police. Coote pleaded guilty at a hearing in October 2025 and was granted conditional bail before appearing in court in December.
The offense of making indecent images of children involves downloading, sharing or storing abusive photos or videos. The court heard in October that Coote extracted the video from the hard drive onto a laptop on January 2, 2020.
Judge Nirmal Shanto told the court: “David Coote, you have fallen spectacularly. You were filmed making comments about the then Liverpool manager, which led to this investigation.”
“The image was of a young boy performing an indecent act on us. At the time you told police you were going to find cocaine, but it was for your personal use and you were cautioned for that. Those who commit crimes of this nature must realize they are dealing with real children and the harm it causes.”
Commenting on the sentence, the judge said: “The question I have to consider is whether this sentence is suspended. Is the offense so serious that only immediate detention is appropriate, or is there a realistic prospect of rehabilitation?”
“At the time of the offences, you were a lonely man who was in the midst of a successful career but had a failed relationship and was taking cocaine. “The pre-sentence judgment concluded that there were realistic prospects for rehabilitation.
“Almost six years have passed since this offense and there is no evidence that you have committed any further offenses. The risk of you committing further offenses is low.”
Coote was sacked by England’s governing body PGMOL in December 2024 after video footage containing comments about former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was leaked. He was subsequently suspended for eight weeks by the FA in August 2025 due to the footage.
Coote began refereeing professionally in 2010 as part of the Football League’s referee list. He was promoted to the Premier League in 2018 and was in charge for six years.
The former executive oversaw a number of high-profile matches, including the 2023 Carabao Cup final, where Manchester United defeated Newcastle at Wembley. His last Premier League refereeing stint followed Liverpool’s victory over Aston Villa at Anfield in November 2024.
Following his dismissal in the same year, PGMOL issued a statement regarding his departure. “Following a thorough investigation into David Coote’s conduct, his employment with PGMOL has been terminated today with immediate effect.
“David Coote’s actions were found to be in material breach of the terms of his employment contract and his position was deemed untenable.
“Supporting David Coote remains important to us and we remain committed to his welfare. David Coote has the right to appeal the decision to terminate his employment.”
The former official was also banned from refereeing by UEFA until June 30, 2026 after he was seen in another video inhaling a white powder while in Germany as part of preparations for Euro 2024.
