PGMOL chief Howard Webb breaks his silence on Coote incident as the FA open up its own investigation in the matter.
PGMOL chief Howard Webb said the organisation was taking the incident “very seriously”.
Following comments made by referee David Coote against Jürgen Klopp in a video that went viral this week, the Football Association has opened its own investigation into his actions.
The referees’ organisation, Professional Game Match Officials Ltd., is looking into Coote after video surfaced of the 42-year-old calling the former Liverpool manager a “German cunt” and “arrogant.” Coote is subject to the FA’s regulations as a football player, and the investigation will probably focus on a possible violation of rule E3, which addresses conduct that defames the sport.
If it is discovered that participants used derogatory language or actions related to a variety of personal traits, such as a person’s nationality, they may then face additional, more serious violations of the rule.
When questioned about his interactions with Klopp as a match official, Coote seems to be talking to pals in the Monday web footage. The FA has the authority to punish anybody if the content is shown in public places, even though the comments were made privately. In a second video, Coote stated: “Just to be clear, that last video can’t go anywhere, seriously.”
For the first time, Webb addressed the matter on Tuesday night, stating that PGMOL was treating the event seriously. However, he did not provide an update on the completion date of the probe into Coote’s comments.
Speaking on the TV show Match Officials Mic’d Up, Webb said: “We became aware of a video being circulated on social media that we are taking very seriously. We have instigated a full investigation, one of our referees David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending the outcome of the investigation.” Webb said the ongoing investigation prevented him from making further comment.