A soccer coach in Ashfield, England was fined $300 for yelling a homophobic slur at an openly gay referee during a match last fall.
Aaron Pride, 25, was also ordered to pay the unidentified referee — whom the prosecutor said is openly gay — $60 in compensation. Pride's lawyer told the court his client was sorry.
“Tempers were running very high and words were exchanged with the referee,” said Matthew Taylor. “Mr Pride accepts using the word. He didn’t know the referee was gay, but accepts that it shouldn’t make a difference. He is very remorseful.”
The presiding judge told the defendant: “Sadly you do the game of soccer no favours. It’s got a bad enough reputation as it is."
I could find no specific mention of what league this was, but it is clearly of the local variety.
