World Cup VAR referee forced to deny on air ‘far right’ hand gesture
FIFA is understood to be aware of the incident
Shaun Evans said it was an ‘involuntary, subconscious twitch’ that led to an ‘OK’ symbol during the official broadcast of Germany's opening game against Curaçao on Sunday
“Images taken later during the match showed that I repeated this movement many times while holding a pen between my fingers.”
Referee Shaun Evans gives a yellow card to Will Dobson of the Jets during Leg 2 of the A-League Men Elimination Final series between Newcastle Jets and Sydney FC at at McDonald Jones Stadium, on May 16, 2026, in Newcastle, Australia. (Photo by Scott Gardiner/Getty Images)
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Evans added: “The coverage following this incident simply does not reflect who I am.
“Of course, I understand how the gesture has been interpreted and I regret this, however I want to be very clear and categorically say that I did not knowingly or deliberately make the hand symbol suggested.
“Officiating at the World Cup is the biggest honour of my career and I look forward to supporting my colleagues for the rest of the tournament.”
In all matches up to and including this one, officials had stood facing towards the camera when the feed cut to the VAR hub in Dallas. In the games that followed it, the VAR teams were shown at work, facing their screens. FIFA has not commented on why this change was made.
Following on from Evans’ statement, the governing body said: “FIFA’s independent disciplinary committee can confirm that, after looking into the matter involving support video assistant referee Shaun Evans, it has found no evidence of breaches of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.
“The Disciplinary Committee has also taken note of Mr Evans’ statement.”
