Banned EPL ref says hiding sexuality led to poor choices

David Coote

Disgraced former Premier League referee David Coote says he hid his sexuality over fears of the abuse he would receive for being gay, apologising for the actions that led to his sacking.

Coote, 42, was suspended in November after footage emerged of him making derogatory remarks about former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp in a video that
was widely shared on social media.

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Further photographs shared by the Sun newspaper in November, which the newspaper said were taken during Euro 2024, appeared to show Coote sniffing a white powder through a rolled-up bank note. He was dismissed by referees body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) last month.

In an interview with the Sun published on Tuesday, Coote revealed he is gay. "I have received deeply unpleasant abuse during my career as a ref and to add my sexuality to that would have been really difficult," he said.

"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," he added.

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