Former Premier League referee David Coote has been charged with making a category A indecent video of a child, prosecutors confirmed on Wednesday.
Coote, 43, from Nottingham, is due to appear at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on Thursday for the first hearing linked to the charge. Category A offences are the most serious, involving images or videos depicting penetrative sexual activity with a child.
The case comes almost a year after Coote was dismissed from refereeing duties by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL). His sacking followed the leak of footage in which he directed a foul-mouthed tirade at former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, calling him a “German c***” and describing the club as “s***”.
In the leaked video, Coote accused Klopp of arrogance and claimed he deliberately avoided speaking to him during matches, while describing James Milner as “all right”.
Coote began officiating in the Premier League in 2018 and took charge of more than 100 top-flight matches. He was also part of the refereeing roster for Euro 2024 in Germany.
Since his dismissal from refereeing, Coote was spotted working as a delivery driver for Evri, appearing in doorbell camera footage earlier this year.
The Football Association and PGMOL have not commented on the latest charge.