Right-wing extremist symbol?
“Unconscious twitch” – referee defends gesture
June 16, 2026 – 5:10 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
Sign for “White Power” or a simple “Okay”? A short hand gesture before the Germany game causes great excitement. Now the culprit explains himself.
The Australian video referee Shaun Evans defended himself after his unusual hand gesture in the run-up to the Germany game at the World Cup – and has been exonerated by the world association Fifa. “I want to make it clear that I in no way intentionally made a hand gesture or symbol to convey a message, an affiliation, a game or a worldview of any kind,” the 38-year-old said, according to several media reports.
“The only explanation I can offer is that the movement was an involuntary, unconscious twitch and I was completely unaware that I had done it at that moment,” Evans said. “Pictures taken later during the game showed that I repeated this movement many times while holding a pen between my fingers.”
During the broadcast of the World Cup game between the DFB team and Curacao (7:1) in Houston, Evans was shown in the video room in Dallas. In the sequence, which lasted a few seconds, he formed a circle with his thumb and index finger and extended the remaining fingers. There was then speculation on social networks whether Evans had made a sign that is used by right-wing extremist groups as a symbol of “white power”.
FIFA sees no “evidence of violations”
After examining the matter, FIFA said it had found “no evidence of violations of the FIFA disciplinary code.” “The coverage of this incident simply does not reflect who I am,” said Evans: “Of course I understand how the gesture was interpreted and I regret that. However, I want to state very clearly and categorically that I did not make the hand signal knowingly or intentionally.”
The anti-discrimination network Football Against Racism in Europe (FARE) had previously called for consequences. “A global television audience should not be confronted with right-wing extremists using neo-Nazi symbols. It is clear that this official should have no further role at this World Cup,” it said in a statement.
The meaning of the hand gesture is not clear. It is also used as an “Okay” sign in many countries. At the same time, the symbol has also been used by right-wing extremist groups for several years. There it is seen as a symbol of the supposed superiority of white people.