John Beaton
| Born |
9 January 1982 Glasgow, United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2001– | Scottish Football Association | Referee | |
| 2009–2013 | SFL / SPL | Referee | |
| International | |||
| Years | League | Role | |
| 2012– | FIFA listed | Referee | |
John Beaton (born 9 January 1982) is a Scottish football referee who officiates in the Scottish Professional Football League. He has been a FIFA listed referee since 2012.
Career
[edit]Football
[edit]John Beaton became a referee in 2001 and was admitted to the SFA senior list in 2005 before becoming a Category 1 referee in 2009.[1]
He has refereed at the UEFA U17 Championship Qualifying Tournament in 2009[2] and the Scottish Junior Cup Final.[3] He refereed two games at UEFA u19 Elite Round in Serbia in May 2012. His first Europa League match appointment was 5 July 2012 Elsborg v Floriana.
In March 2010, he was stuck overnight, along with the Queen's Park team, in snow gates overnight on the A9 in Scotland after he refereed an Elgin City match.[4]
Beaton became a FIFA referee in 2012.[5] He appeared as a fourth official in the 2014 World Cup qualifier between Romania and the Netherlands.[6]
In May 2015, Beaton refereed the Riyadh derby between Al Hilal and Al Nassr in the Saudi Professional League, where Salem Al-Dawsari motioned to head-butt him after a decision did not go his way.[7] Around the same time, Beaton attracted media attention with photos surfacing that appeared to show him drinking alcohol in a Rangers pub after a match.[8]
In May 2026, Beaton attracted controversy after awarding Celtic a late stoppage-time penalty against Motherwell during the penultimate match of the Scottish Premiership season.[9] The decision proved significant in Celtic's title challenge with Hearts, allowing them to remain one point behind heading into the final day of the campaign.[10] Following the match, Beaton reportedly received threats and was placed under police protection.[11] A 19-year-old man was later arrested after the referee's personal details were allegedly shared online.[12]
Non football
[edit]Outside of football, Beaton started his career as a journalist before becoming communications officer for Strathclyde Police. He is currently media relations manager at ScotRail Alliance, having previously been a communications officer for the University of Strathclyde.[13]
References
[edit]- ↑ "SFA Profile". Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ↑ "John Beaton and Andy Tait appointed to UEFA". INSIDE FOOTBALL. Scottish Football Association. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ↑ "Cup final honour for whistler John". Motherwell Times. 8 May 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ↑ "Snow way through for Queen's Park team and referee". sport.stv.tv. Scottish Television. 31 March 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
- ↑ FIFA. "Scotland: Referees". Retrieved on 6 June 2013.
- ↑ FIFA. "Match Report - Romania - Netherlands 1:4 (1:3)". 16 October 2012. Retrieved on 6 June 2013.
- ↑ "Referee John Beaton 'headbutted' during Saudi tie". heraldscotland.com. The Herald (Glasgow). 11 May 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ↑ "Chris Sutton: If online pub pics are valid, John Beaton's guilty of 'sheer stupidity'". Glasgow Times. 10 January 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ Dowden, Martin (13 May 2026). "Motherwell 2–3 Celtic". BBC Sport.
- ↑ "'Worst VAR decision I've ever seen': New angle adds fresh twist to 'disgusting' title drama". FOX Sports. 15 May 2026.
- ↑ "Referee Beaton under police surveillance, says SFA". BBC Sport. 15 May 2026.
- ↑ "Man, 19, arrested after Celtic v Motherwell referee's personal details leaked". Kent Online. 15 May 2026.
- ↑ "MR John Beaton Communications Officer". www.strath.ac.uk. Strathclyde University. Archived from the original on 10 November 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2011.