Premier League referee David Coote has been suspended after a video emerged appearing to show the official calling Jurgen Klopp a “German c***” and Liverpool “s***.”
The footage circulating on social media appears to show Coote in conversation with an unknown man, who asks what he thinks of an unspecified Liverpool game. “Liverpool were s***,” the man appearing to be Coote replies. Asked what he thinks of Klopp, he responds: “C***. Absolute c***.”
A PGMOL statement on Monday afternoon read: “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation. PGMOL will be making no further comment until that process is complete.”
The Independent has not been able to verify the content or authenticity of the video.
But who is 42-year-old referee Coote – and how long has he officiated in the Premier League?
Coote, who the PGMOL confirmed last year is a Notts County fan, started refereeing as a 16-year-old in Nottinghamshire, working his way up the divisions from the Notts Alliance League to the National League and EFL.
He was promoted to the list of EFL referees in 2010 and took charge of the 2014 League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium, where Rotherham United beat Leyton Orient on penalties.
Coote was promoted to officiate in the Premier League in April 2018, taking charge of West Brom’s victory against Newcastle United, and a few months later was promoted to the Premier League’s Select Group 1 – the top band for English referees.
The Nottinghamshire official was the man in the middle for Liverpool’s 1-1 draw against Burnley in July 2020, when Andy Robertson and Klopp voiced their anger at Coote at the end of the match. It is believed this is the match referenced in the video allegedly showing Coote.
“How can you let it happen that a goalie, constantly when a corner comes in, that three players are allowed to block him?” Klopp said afterwards.
“That is not how it should be. But obviously for the ref it was not a foul or not a problem and that is why he didn’t whistle in these situations. That is what I told him but it had no influence on the result I realised later."
A few months later, Coote was the video assistant referee (VAR) when Jordan Pickford’s challenge on Virgil van Dijk in October 2020 went unpunished in a controversial Merseyside Derby.
Van Dijk ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament, with Klopp bemused that Coote did not tell on-field referee Michael Oliver to go to the video monitor to look at a potential red card for Pickford.
"It was a clear penalty I saw and then we saw the flag went up, I thought they would still look at the foul but that didn’t happen," said Klopp.
"I don’t want to say Jordan Pickford wanted to do it but it is not a challenge a goalie can do in the box."
Coote was also the VAR during Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal last December, in Klopp’s final season at Anfield, when the Reds were controversially denied a penalty after Martin Odegaard touched the ball with his hand in the penalty area.
Howard Webb, the head of the PGMOL, admitted that referee Chris Kavanagh and the VAR, Coote, were wrong not to award a penalty.
The highest profile game he has officiated – in terms of prestige – was the 2023 Carabao Cup final, where Manchester United beat Newcastle United 2-0 at Wembley.
Most recently, Coote refereed Liverpool’s 2-0 win against Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
He also officiated West Ham’s 2-1 win against Man Utd last month, in which the Hammers were awarded a penalty in stoppage time. The game turned out to be ex-Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag’s last game in charge.
