SOCCER SUPREMACY

World Cup Referee Accused of Making Vile Gesture on Camera

Australian official Shaun Evans is accused of flashing a white power hand sign during a live World Cup broadcast.

An Australian video official appeared to flash a hand signal associated with white supremacists during Sunday’s broadcast of Germany’s 7-1 rout of Curaçao. Shaun Evans, 38, was serving as a support video assistant referee when cameras cut to the review booth before kickoff, briefly showing him forming an inverted “OK” gesture. Once a sign of approval, it has been co-opted by the far right—three raised fingers read as a W, and the loop as a P, for white power. Christchurch mosque gunman Brenton Tarrant made the same sign at his 2019 court hearing. Evans, a former bricklayer, worked as a VAR at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The anti-racism Fare network demanded his removal, insisting the official “should have no further role to play in this World Cup.” FIFA acknowledged the matter but declined to comment. The Anti-Defamation League characterizes the gesture as a hate symbol but warns “caution” should be exercised in interpreting it because it’s also occasionally used as a harmless playground prank—with the gesture made toward the ground before punching a second person in the arm if they happen to look down.