LONDON — The English Football Association has initiated an investigation following the emergence of a video on social media that seemingly captures a Premier League referee making derogatory remarks about former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

David Coote has been put on suspension by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the body overseeing refereeing in England, which is also conducting its own inquiry.

A spokesperson for the English FA confirmed their awareness of the situation, stating, “We are aware of the matter, and we are investigating it.”

In the contested video, an individual resembling Coote is heard using several expletives to describe Klopp and expressing a desire not to engage with anyone perceived as “arrogant.”

Although it has yet to be substantiated whether the footage is altered, PGMOL is treating the video as authentic, a source familiar with the inquiry disclosed on the condition of anonymity, as they were not permitted to discuss the details.

Digital forensics expert Professor Hany Farid from the University of California, Berkeley, examined the video and confirmed that there is no indication it was manipulated using deepfake technology. Farid utilized specialized models designed to differentiate between genuine and AI-generated audio and visual content.

“This model finds no evidence of AI generation,” he remarked, noting that there were “no obvious visual artifacts in the video to suggest that it is AI-generated.”

Klopp departed from Liverpool at the conclusion of the last season and has been succeeded by Dutch manager Arne Slot.