Former Premier League referee David Coote has been given a suspended prison sentence after pleading guilty to making an indecent moving image of a 15-year-old boy. The 43-year-old was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday after a video of a schoolboy undressing and performing sexual acts was found on his laptop.
Judge Shant described Coote's actions as a 'spectacular fall from grace' and imposed a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, restricting his contact with children and where he can live. Coote was also ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work. The category A video, the most serious classification, was discovered after police seized his devices in February 2025.
Prosecutor Jeremy Janes told the court that the video, lasting 2 minutes and 11 seconds, showed the boy undressing completely before performing sexual acts on himself. The investigation began after an unrelated video emerged of Coote making derogatory comments about former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp, which went viral and led to his dismissal by Professional Game Match Officials Limited in December 2024.
Defence lawyer Laura Jane Miller said Coote was dealing with personal and mental health difficulties at the time of the offence and was 'deeply ashamed'. She argued for a suspended sentence to avoid him being a burden on the public purse. Coote left court via a private exit, declining to comment.
