'I'm here and I'm OK!' – Keith Cooper on the week he was declared dead

Former Premier League referee Keith Cooper, 78, was mistakenly declared dead this week after the Wiltshire FA and FAW confused him with another referee of the same name who had passed away.

Keith Cooper, a respected Welsh referee who officiated in the Premier League from 1993 to 1996, found himself at the centre of an unusual mix-up this week. On Tuesday, the Wiltshire FA and FAW mistakenly announced that Cooper had died at 78, when in fact it was another referee sharing his name from Wiltshire who had sadly passed away.

The error was quickly reported by several news outlets, including WalesOnline, before being swiftly deleted once the mistake came to light within minutes.

Cooper has since been reassuring people that he is very much alive and well, and maintaining his characteristic sense of humour about the bizarre situation. "Well, I'm not dead, I'm here and I'm OK!" he laughed when recalling his response to a man at a sports centre who greeted him with "You were dead!"

Cooper's distinguished refereeing career included taking charge of the 1994 League Cup final between Aston Villa and Manchester United at Wembley. Since retiring from refereeing, he has remained involved in football through radio punditry and matchday work at Cardiff City, while also working with children with special educational needs.