- Former top-flight referee David Coote gave an emotional interview this week
- Coote revealed that he had turned to drugs over fears of coming out as gay
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Ruben Amorim’s comments are remarkable… but can we blame him?
Former Premier League referee David Coote could land a new role in football, according to a report.
Coote was dismissed as a Premier League referee in December 2024 after the emergence of videos earlier in the year that saw him call ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp ‘a German ****’.
Footage also emerged alleging to show him sniffing a white powder through a rolled-up bank note.
It was apparently taken during the summer’s European Championship. The PGMOL found Coote’s actions made his position as a Premier League official ‘untenable’ and the organisation headed up by Howard Webb terminated his employment with immediate effect.
This week, in an interview with The Sun, Coote revealed that he turned to drugs over fear of coming out as gay in the ‘macho world’ of the Premier League.
The same outlet now claim that the 42-year-old could make a sensational return to football as a VAR instructor.
David Coote could be set for a speedy return to top-level football according to a recent report
In one leaked video, Coote made disparaging remarks about ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp
Coote publicly came out in an interview with The Sun and apologised for his actions
A source close to the former Premier League official is quoted as saying: ‘He still gets on with all the other referees and I could see him taking a role somewhere. He’d be perfect as a VAR pundit or expert.’
In his emotional interview this week, Coote explained how shame over his sexuality led to a battle with drugs and he admitted that he had used them as an escape.
‘I felt a deep sense of shame during my teenage years in particular, he said. ‘I didn’t come out to my parents until I was 21. I didn’t come out to my friends until I was 25.
‘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 dealing 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.’
However, he quickly faced criticism from former England international and a gay athlete, who accused him of conducting the explosive tell-all for the wrong reasons.
‘David Coote opening up about his sexuality and the timing really bothers me because it has 0 to do with his actions and why he got sacked,’ Sanderson posted on X.
‘We all make mistakes no doubt but this is just outright wrong and these types of things make it harder for people in our community to be accepted and taken seriously! It has the reverse affect [sic].
Coote said that he felt a deep sense of regret and didn’t recognise himself in the videos
The 42-year-old took charge of 112 Premier League matches during his time as a top-flight ref
‘Do the interview if you want but release in different parts then.’
Coote was suspended by the PGMOL on November 11 and just a few days later, The Sun released a video of him allegedly snorting a white substance while officiating at Euro 2024. This prompted a new investigation from UEFA.
He said he has been in an ‘incredibly dark place’ since the footage was published and confirmed the power he had been snorting was cocaine.
‘I don’t recognise myself in the cocaine video,’ added Coote. ‘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.’
