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14th October 2025
10:56am BST
Former Premier League referee David Coote has plead guilty to making an indecent image of a child.
The 43-year-old was charged in August after an investigation by Nottinghamshire Police.
On Tuesday at Nottingham Crown Court, he admitted to making the image of a child on 2 January 2020.
He was granted conditional bail and will next appear in court on 11 December.
Coote has been at the centre of controversy in recent months, being relieved from his position as Premier League referee after videos emerged of him making comments about Jurgen Klopp.
The ex-Premier League referee was officially suspended by the FA after making a series of unprofessional comments about former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
Coote was suspended for an eight-week period and was also told to attend a mandatory face-to-face education programme following his alleged “Aggravated Breach” of FA rules.
In a clip that was widely shared on social media last winter, Coote was recorded making a series of “abusive and/or insulting words about Jurgen Klopp.”
The video was never officially verified but Coote is said to have later admitted that it was recorded in his living room back in 2020.
As part of the investigation, Coote is said to have apologised to the FA and the former Liverpool manager, for whom Coote is said to hold “deep professional respect.”
