Former Premier League referee David Coote pleaded not guilty after being charged with creating an indecent image of a minor.
Coote appeared before Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, facing charges related to a video recovered by the authorities in February.
During the hearing, which lasted 18 minutes, the former referee, 43 years old, only confirmed his name, date of birth and pleaded not guilty.
The accusation of creating an indecent image of a minor includes actions such as downloading, sharing, or saving photos or videos of abuse.
According to Nottinghamshire Police, the charge relates to a video obtained in February, before Coote was charged on August 12.
District Judge Gillian Young granted bail to Coote, of Woodhill Road, Collingham, near Newark, Nottinghamshire. He was ordered to appear at Nottingham Crown Court on October 9 for a further hearing.
In December, Coote was dismissed by Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) after a video surfaced with comments about former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp, made in 2020.
In August of this year, the Football Association imposed an eight-week suspension on him due to the video about Klopp.
In January, Coote publicly revealed his homosexuality in an interview and stated that his lifelong struggle to hide his sexual orientation contributed to the comments about Klopp.
