Howard Webb has admitted that David Coote's career as a referee is almost certainly over, following a series of scandals that led to his dismissal by the Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) and a ban from Uefa. Webb, the chief refereeing officer, said it would be 'really difficult' for Coote to return to officiating.
Coote was suspended by the Football Association this week after a video emerged of him making derogatory remarks about former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp during lockdown. He also admitted to drug use during his time as a referee, which contributed to his sacking by PGMO late last year.
Webb described the affair as 'sad' but said the outcome was likely irreversible. 'I think it'd be really difficult for David to come back, I'm afraid to say,' he said. 'He is somebody that we stay in contact with, somebody who was part of our refereeing family for a long time... So it's sad what happened with David, but I would think it would be a challenging thing for him to come back.'
The scandal has prompted PGMO to review its approach to mental health support for officials. Webb said the organisation had sought to 'beef up' its mental health provision, including increased access to sports psychologists. 'We wanted to really emphasise to them that doing that was a sign of strength and not weakness,' he said.
Webb acknowledged the pressures of refereeing, saying that while he had a 'thick skin', the job could wear officials down over time. 'Our only intention is to make sure the officials go out there in the best frame of mind and feeling confident,' he said. 'I think that [the Coote affair] opened our eyes to the need to have those conversations on a human level with our officials.'
