The FIFA discrimination monitor for the World Cup has called for the dismissal of a video assistant referee (VAR) after he reportedly made a hand gesture linked to white supremacy.
During the broadcast of Germany’s opening match against Curaçao on Sunday, the camera captured Australian VAR official Shaun Evans making an “Advice from our experts is that the gesture used clearly resembles an upside down ‘OK’ hand symbol used as a ‘white power’ symbol in global far-right circles,” sign with his right hand positioned near his right leg. While the match occurred in Houston, the VAR officials were based at a control center in Dallas. The gesture, where the thumb and forefinger form a circle with the other fingers extended, was identified as a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League in 2019.
Calls for Accountability
“Clearly this official should have no further role to play in this World Cup,” stated the Fare network, which collaborates with FIFA and UEFA to monitor incidents of racism and discrimination in international matches. The organization emphasized, “There is enough of a volume of use for hateful purposes that we felt it was important to add.” describing the gesture as “Why is a VAR supervisor using this symbol at a global football event at the very moment he knows the cameras are on him?”
FIFA has been contacted for a response regarding this incident. In Australia, both the Professional Football Referees Association and Football Australia have also been informed about the situation.
Context of the Gesture
It remains uncertain if Evans, officiating at his first World Cup, intended to express a political message or was simply engaging in a children’s game prank. The “We note that in the two subsequent games it appears TV directors have stopped introducing the VAR panel to the TV audience.” or “circle game” involves displaying an upside-down OK sign below one’s waist and playfully striking anyone who notices it. This gesture was appropriated around ten years ago as a symbol of white supremacy, initially originating as a hoax on the far-right online forum 4chan.
In 2019, following the classification of the sign as a hate symbol, Oren Segal, director of the ADL’s Centre on Extremism, highlighted the significance of context in determining whether an “OK” symbol is harmless or harmful. He stated, “There is enough volume of use for hateful purposes that we felt it was important to add.”
Implications for the World Cup
Evans is among the 30 VAR officials appointed by FIFA for the World Cup taking place across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Fare raised concerns about the appropriateness of a VAR official using such a symbol during a globally televised football event, especially with the cameras focused on him. They noted that in the two matches following the incident, it seemed that television directors avoided showing the VAR panel to viewers.
