UEFA removes David Coote from Nations League after video emerges; referee faces FA and PGMOL investigations

David Coote has been removed from his duties in an upcoming Nations League match and future UEFA matches, CBS Sports understands, amid multiple investigations into a video in which he abuses Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool.

Coote was suspended with immediate effect by refereeing body PGMOL pending a full investigation into the expletive-laced tirade. The English Football Association has also launched its own investigation into the 42-year-old. Meanwhile, Coote will no longer officiate a Nations League match during the international break, as planned.

Coote has been used as a VAR by UEFA in the past, most recently taking command of the video booth at last week’s Champions League match between PSV Eindhoven and Girona. He is not expected to be called up for any continental matches in the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, Coote faces a possible misconduct charge from the FA in relation to comments in which he referenced Klopp’s German nationality. FA rules state that references to nationality can constitute an aggravated offense which would result in a more severe sanction for the Nottinghamshire referee. It is understood that Coote does not deny appearing in the video, where he appears to call Liverpool “shit” and refer to his former manager Klopp in various profane and derogatory ways.

Coote has yet to comment on the incident. Speaking on Match Officials Mic’d Up on Tuesday, PGMOL boss Howard Webb said: “We became aware of a video that was circulating on social media which we are taking very seriously. “We have launched a full investigation. “One of our referees, David Coote, has been suspended with immediate effect pending the outcome of that investigation. “There is not much more I can say at this time until we have worked through that investigation.”

In the video, the man who appears to be Coote refers to an incident involving them in the 1-1 draw between Liverpool and Burnley in July 2020, after which Klopp criticized the referee for passing up “a lot of challenges”. The German had also faced Coote at the final whistle of this match. “He accused me of lying,” Coote seems to say, “and then he threw a straight punch at me. I have no interest in talking to someone who is fucking arrogant.”

In a second video, the individual said, “Just to be clear, that last video can’t go anywhere, seriously.”

There have been clashes between Klopp and Coote since then, most notably when the latter was a VAR official in the 1-1 draw between Liverpool and Arsenal in December 2024, a match in which Martin Odegaard avoided awarding a penalty for a handball on the area. . Coote was also in charge when Liverpool beat Aston Villa 2-0 at Anfield on Saturday and was the VAR official when Jordan Pickford went unpunished for a tackle on Virgil van Dijk that resulted in an ACL injury.

Meanwhile, an individual who appears to be the second person in the video has been suspended by his employers. Former Nottinghamshire cricketer Ben Kitt now works for executive recruitment firm Forsyth Barnes. Its co-founder Roheel Ahmed told Nottinghamshire Live: “Forsyth Barnes understands that the leaked David Coote video includes one of its employees, Ben Kitt. This is something we are taking very seriously and we have suspended Ben with pay. complete while we investigate. further.

“While we are still in the process of gathering all the facts, we know for certain that the video was recorded a few years before Ben became an employee of Forsyth Barnes.”