Former PL referee David Coote comes out as gay and admits to ‘real struggles’

By PA Sport Staff

Shamed former Premier League referee David Coote has come out as gay and revealed that a lifelong struggle to hide his sexuality contributed to the X-rated rant that saw him dismissed from his post last year.

Coote was initially suspended last October after footage emerged of him mocking ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp in a video that was widely shared on social media.

In an interview with The Sun, Coote said: “My sexuality isn’t the only reason that led me to be in that position. But I’m not telling an authentic story if I don’t say that I’m gay, and that I’ve had real struggles with hiding that.

“I hid my emotions as a young ref and I hid my sexuality as well — a good quality as a referee but a terrible quality as a human being.

 

“And that’s led me to a whole course of behaviours.”

Further photographs shared by The Sun in November, which the newspaper claimed were taken during Euro 2024, appeared to show Coote sniffing a white powder through a rolled-up bank note.

“I don’t recognise myself in the cocaine video,” Coote added. “I can’t resonate with how I felt then, but that was me.

“I was struggling with the schedule and there was no opportunity to stop. And so I found myself in that position — escaping.

“I’ve had long periods where I’ve not used it — but it was one of the escape routes I had. Just getting away from the stresses, the relentlessness of the job. It fills me with a huge sense of shame to say that I took that route.”

Coote said he and his late mother had received death threats following decisions he made on the field, and cited his own example to show how relentless abuse from the stands and on social media could impact the mental health of officials.

“I’ve received death threats during my career,” Coote revealed. “I’ve needed an accelerated response tag on my home address for me to speak to the police in an emergency.

“I’ve also had messages from irate supporters hoping that I had an accident on the way home from a game.

“Every official that takes to the pitch up and down the country from a local playing field to the Premier League is a human being, not just a referee.

“They have feelings. They may not show them, but it will impact them when they’re receiving abuse. I’ve struggled and I’ve tried to get through it in my own way and made poor decisions in doing so.

“I hope that others make better decisions and that referees are given an easier ride in the levels of scrutiny, and levels of abuse that come in their direction. I hope this shines a light on the impact it can have on a person.”

In a separate statement Coote said: “This has been one of the most difficult periods of my life. I take full responsibility for my actions, which fell way below what was expected of me. I am truly sorry for any offence caused by my actions and for the negative spotlight it put on the game that I love. I hope people will understand that they were private moments taken during very low times in my life. They do not reflect who I am today or what I think.

“My focus now is on continuing to prioritise my mental health and wellbeing. I hope that my experiences, both on and off the field, can be utilised in football at some point in the future.

“Finally, I want to thank everyone who has supported me recently, in particular my family, friends, former colleagues, PGMOL and Howard Webb, and countless people across football. Special thanks also to the many strangers who have reached out with words of encouragement and support, I have appreciated it more than I can properly express.”

 

Coote’s contract was terminated by referee’s body PGMOL following its investigation into the initial video, in which Coote, asked for his views on a Liverpool match where he has just been fourth official, describes them as “s***”.

He then describes Klopp as a “c***”, and, asked why he felt that way, Coote says the German had “a right pop at me when I reffed them against Burnley in lockdown”. He goes on to describe Klopp as “f****** arrogant” and “a German c***”.

Coote admitted he was “not sober” during the filming of the initial video, which he said had been made by a friend and that he had subsequently forgotten about.

“The video has been sat with somebody for four years, I’d forgotten it existed,” added Coote.

“I was sat waiting for my car to be serviced and I received a call to say that this video has surfaced on social media. You can tell from the video I clearly wasn’t sober and I deeply regret that I found myself in that position.

“The first thing I want to do is apologise to anyone I’ve offended by my actions. I recognised they fell well short of standards that are expected of a top-level referee and I deeply regret saying what I said.”