Published on 6/15/2026
A referee sparked a state of intense controversy after his behavior before the match between Germany and Curacao in the fifth group of the 2026 World Cup finals.
Australian referee Sean Evans, who supervises the video assistant technology, “VAR,” was spotted making a strange gesture with his hand of a racist nature, as described by the French newspaper “Le Parisien,” before the start of the aforementioned match.
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A referee’s move raises controversy in the World Cup
As the live camera panned to show the three referees in charge of reviewing the footage from FIFA’s international broadcast center in Dallas, Evans appeared behind his two teammates.
Four seconds after his appearance, Evans appeared to make a gesture with his right hand, where his thumb touched his index finger while the rest of his fingers remained extended. This continued for approximately 8 seconds and then he turned around.
The snapshot spread like wildfire on social media, amid accusations that the referee made a gesture indicating discrimination against the “white race,” according to what the Spanish newspaper “Marca” reported.
The newspaper explained that this reference has many interpretations, including that groups advocating “white power” or what is known as “white supremacy” have used a similar reference to express their ideology.
This reference has also been used by the far-right, anti-government Australian Three Percenters movement.
Other explanations
At the same time, the newspaper pointed out that this sign could be interpreted as an innocent joke between friends, or the so-called “Circle Game,” where people try to trick others into looking at a sign similar to the “OK” sign that is made below waist level.
The British newspaper “Daily Mail” confirmed that it is likely that FIFA will investigate the referee to find out the truth of the matter.
A FIFA spokesman stressed that the International Federation was aware of the incident, but refused to comment further.
For his part, former Spanish referee Iturralde Gonzalez strongly criticized the actions of the Australian referee, describing his move as stupid.
“When the cameras are on you, stop acting stupid and making gestures,” he said.
