The Football News Thread 2024/25

[Paddingtonwolf]

THE SIMPLE FACT IS THIS IS IN THE SUN AS THEY, BEING UTTER CUNTS WERE OUTING HIM

Now he got a few quid and the story is still messy.

everything else is window dressing and that paper is, was, and always will be the biggest disgrace in the history of printed media

 

[Del Woppio]

You're mugging yourself off if you think a gay ref wouldn't get pelters from fans

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Keef or me?

I wasnt saying that

 

[Wilf Wolf]

I’m sure there are other refs that use drugs and rant about people in the game like Coote did about Klopp. The difference is they don’t willingly allow it to be filmed. Without the films he’d still be refereeing (badly) and none of this would be in the public domain. I’m not sure what that’s got to do with being gay.

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

He was a twat. But it has nothing to do with his sexuality that i bet he wanted private until the Sun showed him the no interview alternate front page

 

[Del Woppio]

Keef or me?

I wasnt saying that

Keef, soz. I'm just proper lazy when it comes to quoting unless I know it's not the last post

 

[Paddingtonwolf]

Pas de probleme

 

[Alan]

THE SIMPLE FACT IS THIS IS IN THE SUN AS THEY, BEING UTTER CUNTS WERE OUTING HIM

Now he got a few quid and the story is still messy.

everything else is window dressing and that paper is, was, and always will be the biggest disgrace in the history of printed media

Nail + head

 

[Tony Towner]

Exactly this. His subtext is "I did these bad things because I am gay".

Which is terrible on so many levels.

Christ that's naive

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Christ that's naive

Depends whether you think Coote is a decent person or not.

I don't.

 

[Tony Towner]

Depends whether you think Coote is a decent person or not.

I don't.

It's not about whether he's a decent person. What's naive is that you think he's sat on this for a couple of months and thought 'I know I'll ring The Sun and tell them I'm gay that'll make things better.'

Them and the NOTW have been outing people like this for 40 years, he's been open to his friends and family since his 20s.The only differences are now is they've kept it back for a bit out of some faux duty of care and you can't pitch it like that makes him a deviant like they used to.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

I think he could have handled it entirely differently.

 

[Alan]

“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.”

These do not seem like the words of someone who is trying to use his sexuality as a shield. This isn’t the Kevin Spacey situation.

I’m not sure how to get this across effectively, but the mental strain of hiding such a core piece of one’s own identity can be and often is excruciating, particularly when the hiding is based in fear of exactly the sort of reaction you’re having here (and that, on the spectrum, your reaction is not within 10,000 leagues of the actual violence that the LGBTQ+ community faces every single day).

There is never a convenient time to come out, least of all when the alternative is a national publication doing it for you.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

Alan, I'm sorry mate. But the first 6 words you posted are a quote from him saying that his sexuality is (part of) the reason.

That's what is bothering me about this whole situation, he's come out now. After all this bad stuff has come out, I have no doubts he had struggles, but telling everyone he is gay after he's been found to be doing things that aren't great is suggesting that it's an excuse. And I hate that, I think everyone should hate that.

"Oh so you are gay, that's OK then, don't worry about it"

It's suggesting that being gay leads to people making bad decisions, and that's not a good look is it?

 

[Tony Towner]

If there's not the phrase straightsplaining then there should be.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

If there's not the phrase straightsplaining then there should be.

His sexuality absolutely should not be a part of this story.

It's totally irrelevant.

 

[Alan]

His sexuality absolutely should not be a part of this story.

It's totally irrelevant.

Mate, genuinely, you cannot understand being closeted out of fear unless you have lived it.

You may as well tell me that my depression is irrelevant to my actions. Which, obviously, would be a patently absurd and insulting thing to say.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

I haven't told you that your depression is irrelevant to your actions though.

I'm saying that if after doing something "bad" I told everyone that the reason i made bad choices was because I was gay or because of the colour of my skin, or because of genetics or anything at all, I'd not be taking responsibility for those actions and also would be suggesting that whatever "excuse/reason" I was giving would be devaluing it.

I've made bad decisions, very bad decisions in my life, and I've taken responsibility for them. Not blamed something else or someone else and made excuses, that's what I believe Coote is doing here.

Life is difficult.

 

[Banjo]

I can't imagine Coote would have referenced his sexuality at all if it hadn't been for the fact the Sun was going to out him. The Sun have "helped" him build it into a narrative surrounding his behaviour e.g. "we've found out you're gay and wanted to let you know we're going to report it - how about you do an interview about it and we can try to help you rebuild your reputation at the same time? If not, we'll just run the story and remind our readers about all the stupid shit you did in that video".

 

[Alan]

I don’t know what to say except that the conclusion you’ve arrived at, given the circumstances and particularly the fact that if he didn’t come out, the papers were going to force him out (which is such an incredible violation of his agency), is deeply saddening.

And for the record, yes, my depression has absolutely played a crucial part in many of the hurtful, sometimes hateful things I’ve done in my life. When that headspace takes me, I can be… reprehensible. To minimize it’s role is to minimize my experience, and you don’t have the right to tell me my own motivations. Equally, my depression is a piece of my self; to say “I said these unrepeatable things because of the mental state my depression can push me into” does not relieve me of the responsibility or consequences. And nor does it seem to have done for Coote, who doesn’t appear to have been allowed back as a referee following his statement.