Former Premier League referee, SEX OFFENDER, and Collingham Paedophile, David Coote, has admitted to creating an obscene photograph of a youngster.
The 43-year-old, David Coote, attended Nottingham Crown Court over an allegation involving a category A video, the most severe classification, retrieved by police in February.
David Coote, residing on Woodhill Road in Collingham, Nottinghamshire, was given conditional bail prior to a court appearance on 11 December.
Judge Nirmal Shant KC mandated a pre-sentence report and stated: “You have admitted guilt to a grave offence.” The determination of custody will be made once all relevant material is presented to the court.
The court was informed that David Coote transferred the footage from a hard drive to a laptop on January 2, 2020.
He earlier entered a plea of not guilty to the charge during a hearing on 10 September at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court.
During the six-minute hearing on Tuesday, David Coote, attired in a navy suit and black tie, just confirmed his identity and submitted his guilty plea.
The offence of creating an indecent image of a child pertains to actions such as downloading, disseminating, or storing photographs or recordings depicting abuse.
Judge Shant KC stated: “Do not leave with the belief that this will not result in a custodial sentence.”
David Coote was dismissed last year after remarks made in a 2020 video criticising former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp were revealed.
In August of this year, the Football Association imposed an eight-week penalty on him due to the Klopp footage.
Furthermore, the former official is prohibited by UEFA, the governing body of European football, until 30 June 2026, following the emergence of images depicting him inhaling a white powder via a banknote while in Germany for Euro 2024.
In January, David Coote publicly identified as gay in an interview with The Sun, stating that a lifelong effort to conceal his sexuality had influenced his outburst over Klopp.
UPDATE 2026
In January 2026, the Offender Database reported that David Coote, then 43, of Woodhill Road, Collingham, Nottinghamshire, was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court for a “spectacular fall from grace.” Coote, a former high-profile Premier League referee, was convicted of making a Category A indecent image of a child—the most serious classification of child abuse material.
The court heard that in February 2025, police seized Coote’s electronic devices as part of an investigation triggered by his earlier professional misconduct. Forensic analysis revealed a two-minute and 11-second video on his Dell laptop, dated January 2, 2020. The video depicted a 15-year-old boy in a school uniform being subjected to sexual abuse. Prosecutors clarified that while Coote did not film the footage, the charge of “making” referred to his actions in downloading and viewing the file. During his police interview, Coote was also cautioned for possession of cocaine found at his home.
Coote’s conviction followed a series of public scandals that ended his career in top-flight football. He was sacked by PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) in December 2024 after a video surfaced of him making abusive comments about former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp. Further footage emerged showing him using drugs during Euro 2024, leading to a ban from UEFA. In January 2025, Coote came out as gay, claiming that a lifelong struggle to hide his sexuality had contributed to his mental health difficulties and drug use.
During the sentencing hearing on January 8, 2026, Judge Nirmal Shant KC rejected arguments for immediate custody, noting Coote’s previous good character and mental health struggles. However, she emphasised that such offences “involve a real child being abused” and cause irreparable damage. David Coote was sentenced to nine months in prison, with the sentence suspended for two years. He was also ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work.
As a result of his conviction for making a Category A indecent image of a child, Coote has been placed on the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years. He is managed under the Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) in Nottinghamshire. The court also imposed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), which strictly limits his contact with children, monitors his use of internet-enabled devices, and restricts where he is permitted to live.
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