As a Premier League referee, David Coote is one of the highest paid officials in Europe – though his future in that role has been cast in doubt over a video scandal.
The 42-year-old, from Nottinghamshire, has been suspended by PGMOL after a clip allegedly showing him making derogatory comments about Liverpool and former manager Jurgen Klopp circulated on social media. The footage appears to show him branding the Merseyside club “s***” and labelling their ex-boss a “German c***”.
Coote, who has a history of giving controversial decisions against Liverpool, is now being investigated by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited group, who officiate all top flight matches in England and Wales. In a statement, PGMOL said: “David Coote has been suspended with immediate effect pending a full investigation. PGMOL will be making no further comment until that process is complete.”
Referees in the Premier League are paid between £73,191 and £147,258, based on their experience and rank, with a match fee of £1,116 per game or £837 if they’re working as the video assistant referee for any selected match.
According to The Athletic, referees also earn bonuses based on the quality of their performance – this is measured using ‘key match incidents’, and the more they get right the higher the pay cheque.
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While the Premier League’s top earners by salary in Europe, La Liga’s officials are the highest paid due to other deals. Over on the Iberian peninsula, referees command a fixed £124,256 salary and they receive an additional £4,205 match fee, or £2,102 per game if they are the VAR referee.
On top on those massive earnings, refs in La Liga also pocket an extra £21,929 a year for image rights, as they wear advertising by the Wurth Group on their kits.
Ligue 1 referees’ earnings were previously made public by L’Equipe. Alongside the usual match fee, officials in France are also paid for working on the continent. Refereeing a European match is worth €5,000 (£4,290) a go for French officials, who can also secure up to double that (£8,580) if they work an international fixture.
And if that wasn’t enough, French officials are also allocated a daily allowance of €600 (£515) over a three-day period for expenses like accommodation, travel and meals.