World Cup referee sparks fury as TV camera picks up 'controversial' gesture | OneFootball

The incident in question occurred during Germany's thrashing of Curacao

The FIFA World Cup 2026 is now well underway in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with the majority of discourse from fans throughout the world now relating to matters on the pitch.

All three host nations have got off to an unbeaten start, with the USMNT and Mexico emerging victorious in their opening matches against Paraguay and South Africa respectively, with the latter also seeing Wolverhampton Wanderers' pre-season recruit and former favourite, Raul Jimenez, on target in their 3-0 success in the tournament's opening game.

The West Midlands outfit's Czech defender, Ladislav Krejci, also netted in his nation's 2-1 loss to South Korea on Friday, before Southampton's Cyle Larin and Nestory Irankunda of Watford, also made plenty of headlines for their finishes for Canada and Australia respectively, with the Hornets winger helping the Socceroos defeat Turkiye 2-0 in Vancouver.

Their was also plenty of current and former EFL representation on show during Scotland's first World Cup victory in 36 years against Haiti at Boston Stadium, whilst the same can also be said for Curacao, who made tournament history in Houston on Sunday afternoon.

The CONCACAF-governed nation are the lowest-ranked nation in the first-ever 48-team edition of the World Cup, and with a population of 155,826 people as of two years ago, have, unsurprisingly been tipped to struggle.

However, even in a 7-1 defeat against four-time winners, Germany, Dick Advocaat's side, which included Tahith Chong and Sontje Hansen of Sheffield United and Middlesbrough, they still received plaudits for their endeavour.

That said, there were also some pretty stunning finishes from Julien Nagelsmann's outfit as they ran riot in the second half, but that isn't what is just making the headlines in the wake of the encounter.

Australian VAR official sparks fury after Germany v Curacao incident picked up on TV

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Indeed, it has been widely reported that Australian official, Shaun Evans, has sparked fury after an incident which many have picked up on as a result of the array of TV camera angles used throughout the tournament.

The 38-year-old has been officiating in his native country's A-League since 2012, having been an assistant referee for four years beforehand, and his first World Cup as a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) official came during Qatar 2022.

Yet again, Evans has been selected to help with VAR in the 23rd edition of the tournament, but has now been accused of making a "white power" symbol when filmed in the VAR studio at the International Broadcasting Centre in Dallas, Texas.

In recent times, the 'OK' symbol has held connotations to far-right groups representing white supremacy, with reports also outlining that Evans was seen doing so as he was showcased ahead of kick-off with his VAR official counterparts, as he was given the role of 'Support VAR'

In 2019, it was reportedly added to a list of hate symbols, and was picked up by thousands of watching viewers, with the likes of Fare Network issuing a statement demanding that the Australian takes no further part in the tournament.

Shaun Evans incident could lead to further refereeing controversies at FIFA World Cup 2026

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Reports are also claiming that FIFA have been made aware of the incident in the VAR room ahead of Germany's dominant success, although it remains to be seen if Evans will be allowed to referee in further games throughout the tournament or not.

The Anti-Defamation League also have a clear statement regarding the 'OK' symbol on their website, which reads that caution must be made when questioning its potential usage.

However, this would not be the first refereeing controversy at the World Cup, with Somali referee, Omar Artan being refused entry into the United States ahead of the tournament.

In the fallout of such controversy, it has been revealed Artan will be paid the full refereeing fee by the governing body, and he will also be the man in the middle for the UEFA Super Cup in Salzburg on August 12th between Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa.