Former Premier League referee David Coote has pleaded guilty at Nottingham Crown Court to making an indecent image of a child. The charge relates to a category A video, the most serious kind, recovered by officers in February.
The 43-year-old, who wore a navy suit and black tie, appeared before Judge Shant KC on Tuesday. He spoke only to confirm his name and enter his plea. Coote, of Collingham, near Newark, Nottinghamshire, was granted conditional bail and ordered to appear in court again on 11 December.
As part of his bail conditions, Coote was told not to contact any children and was handed a sexual harm prevention order. The charge of making an indecent image refers to activities such as downloading, sharing or saving abuse photos or videos.
Coote had previously denied the charge at Nottingham Magistrates Court in September. He was sacked by the English refereeing body Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) last December after a video surfaced in which he made comments about then Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp.
Coote refereed 112 Premier League matches, 143 in the Championship, and 30 FA Cup games, as well as four international friendlies. He was a member of the select group of referees, the highest paid and most senior in English football.
Judge Shant told Coote: “You have pleaded guilty to a serious matter. Whether this means custody or not will be decided when all the information is before the court, which is why I have ordered a pre-sentence report.”
