---

David Coote Suspended By PGMOL

David Coote is an English professional referee who started refereeing as a sixteen-year-old. He acted as the referee in the Notts Alliance League, the Northern Counties East Football League, the Northern Premier League and the Conference North before being promoted to the Football League list of referees as an assistant referee. David Coote has made a name for himself as one of the best English referees over the years. This article talks about David Coote being suspended by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) due to the controversy surrounding him.

What Happened To David Coote?

Credit: Sky News

David Coote worked in the National League until 2010 before being promoted to the Football League. His first game in this role came in a Football League Two game between Stockport County and Hereford United. He continued to act as a referee for various years. He was a fantastic referee, consistent across games and knowing when to make a decision, qualities required in a strong referee.

After being a referee for many years, David Coote was finally promoted to the Premier League. Coote officiated his first Premier League game between Newcastle United and West Bromwich Albion on 28th April 2018, which ended in a 1-0 victory for West Brom. The English referee has appointed various big games, including the 2023 EFL Cup Final, which took place between Manchester United and Newcastle United on 14th February 2023.

David Coote was a FIFA-listed referee from 2020 to 2022. However, some highly controversial news came out in November 2024, which put Coote’s job as a referee in danger. The English referee was suspended by PGMOL after video footage with Ben Kitt emerged in which he made derogatory comments about Liverpool and described the then-Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp, as an arrogant “German cunt”, amongst other things.

---

ALSO READ: Barcelona’s Rebirth Under Hansi Flick

---

This news was followed by people discussing that maybe this is the reason David Coote decided that no action would be necessary against Jordan Pickford in a game between Liverpool and Everton in the 2020/21 season. Pickford made a horror tackle on Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk, which resulted in a season-ending injury. However, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in the match, David Coote, decided not to call for any action on Pickford, instead focusing on a marginal offside in the buildup to the collision.

Four key decisions given against #LFC by David Coote

Van Dijk's season-ending injury – no red card for Pickford – Coote VAR
Mane given offside to win the derby – Coote VAR
Ødegaard handball at Anfield – not given – Coote VAR
Salah fouled by Bailey – no foul – Coote referee pic.twitter.com/qltt9QN5et

— Empire of the Kop (@empireofthekop) November 11, 2024

While this decision was a highly contested topic even then, conversations about it have re-emerged after seeing how Coote feels about Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. Coote initially claimed the video was not real; however, he later admitted that it was genuine, leading to his suspension by the PGMOL on 11th November 2024. The Football Association subsequently launched its own investigation into the video due to a potential breach of rule E3.

While this was a huge deal and the controversy surrounding David Coote would most likely mean he would soon be out of a job, on 13th November 2024, another video footage emerged, this one being much worse. New video footage emerged allegedly showing Coote snorting a white powder during Euro 2024. While the referee’s personal opinions had already been called into question and many were calling for his resignation, some were defending Coote, saying referees are allowed to have personal opinions, and that does not mean he let it affect his refereeing decisions.

However, after the second video about Coote leaked online, the entire thing went extremely viral, with everyone hearing about these two incidents and having seen the videos in question. Coote was suspended by UEFA on the same day that the second video surfaced, and the referee is now under scrutiny from various organisations. It is almost guaranteed that David Coote’s career as a professional referee is over, and only time will tell what other sanctions he will face.

For more news and updates on David Coote, keep reading GutshotMagazine.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram.

---

---

More News

---

Comments