It is understood that the Professional Game Match Officials Limited [PGMOL] are investigating a video leaked on X, formerly Twitter, which purportedly shows Premier League referee David Coote labelling former Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp as a “German c***”.
Two videos were posted on the social media platform on Monday, allegedly showing Coote alongside an unidentified man on a sofa. We understand that PGMOL have not yet ruled out the possibility of the video being either deepfaked or AI-generated.
In the first video, the man alleged to be Coote slams Liverpool’s performance in a match before turning his attention to Klopp, noting that “I’ve got no interest in speaking to somebody who’s so f***ing arrogant, so I do my best not to speak to him.”
Embed from Getty ImagesA brief interlude sees the man speak positively about James Milner, before labelling Klopp as a “German c***.”
A second video, just over 20 seconds in length, shows the man alleged to be Coote telling the unidentified man that “just to be clear, that f***ing last video can’t go anywhere seriously.”
The male replies: “He’s a Premier League referee, let’s not f***ing ruin his career.”
The footage has been viewed more than ten million times on social media since first being posted, with fans calling for a thorough investigation into the incident. Some have made reference to controversial decisions going against Liverpool in matches refereed by Coote.
The PGMOL confirm that “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation. PGMOL will be making no further comment until that process is complete.”