Sacked Premier League referee David Coote comes out as gay and explains cocaine use

Sacked Premier League referee David Coote has come out as gay and explained the reasons for him being filmed taking cocaine.
In November, the Premier League official was suspended by the PGMOL after his sweary rant on Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp leaked online.
He said: “Liverpool were s**t.
“C**t, absolute c**t. Aside from having a right pop at me when I was reffing against Burnley in lockdown, he accused me of lying and then just had a right f***ing pop at me.
“I’ve got no interest in speaking to somebody as f***ing arrogant. I do my best not to speak to him…my god, German c***t. F*** me.”
Another investigation was opened two days later after a further video appeared which appeared to show Coote sniffing white powder with a rolled up bank note while officiating at the European Championship.
Before the PGMOL sacked Coote after his position as a referee had become “untenable” after a investigation.
“David Coote’s actions were found to be in serious breach of the provisions of his employment contract,” the PGMOL said.
“Supporting David Coote continues to be important to us and we remain committed to his welfare.”
And now in an interview with The Sun, Coote has explained how he struggled in the “macho” world of Premier League football.
Coote said: “I felt a deep sense of shame during my teenage years in particular. I didn’t come out to my parents until I was 21. I didn’t come out to my friends until I was 25.
“My sexuality isn’t the only reason that led me to be in that position. But I’m not telling an authentic story if I don’t say that I’m gay, and that I’ve had real struggles dealing with hiding that.
“I hid my emotions as a young ref and I hid my sexuality as well — a good quality as a referee but a terrible quality as a human being.
“And that’s led me to a whole course of behaviours.”
Coote added: “I’ve had issues around my self-esteem — and that relates to my sexuality. I’m gay and I’ve struggled with feeling proud of being ‘me’ over a long period of time.
“I have received deeply unpleasant abuse during my career as a ref and to add my sexuality to that would have been really difficult.
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“There’s a lot to be done throughout football and more widely in society with regard to discrimination.
“I didn’t want to be that person that was putting their head above the parapet to be shot at, given the abuse we all get as a referee in any event.”
And Coote insists that it was the “pressure cooker” of attempting to control his emotions that led him to try and “escape” through the use of cocaine.
The former Premier League referee continued: “It’s not something I was reliant on day by day, week by week, month by month.
“I’ve had long periods where I’ve not used it — but it was one of the escape routes I had. Just getting away from the stresses, the relentlessness of the job. It fills me with a huge sense of shame to say that I took that route.
“In 2023 I lost my mum very suddenly. At the same time my uncle was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. After Covid and the introduction of VAR, six officials were suddenly needed for each game.
“I was selected by Fifa for the U17 World Cup in Indonesia, as well as the Euros and Olympics last year.
“It meant that over the course of the 2023-24 season I was involved in more than 90 games — often back to back. At the end of last season I went straight into the Euros and that was incredibly pressurised. I had another tournament coming up immediately — heading to Paris for the Olympics.”
After going through therapy, Coote has now explained that he has kicked his habit, he continued: “I put on this hard exterior. Football became a place where I could go and referee and be engrossed in the game.
“But then I’d come home and it would be more difficult because I’m living a double sense of being.
“To other people who are in my situation, I’d say seek help and talk to somebody because if you bottle it up like I have done it has to come out in some way.”