The electronic structure of a wide bandgap van der Waals antiferromagnetic material CoPS (transition metal phosphorus trichalcogenide) is studied using angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy at room temperature which is well above the transition temperature for this compound. The observed dispersion of the electronic states in the valence band is correctly described using spin-resolved band structure. This observation points to the importance of the local electron–electron correlations and fluctuations for the description of the electronic and magnetic properties of transition metal phosphorus trichalcogenides and draws further ideas for the studies of electronic structure of CoPS and other similar materials.