World Cup referee gesture sparks online uproar and wild speculation

A brief hand gesture by Australian referee supervisor Sean Evans during the buildup to the Curacao-Germany match at the 2026 World Cup set off a storm online. The incident happened just before kickoff, when FIFA’s international broadcast showed the on-field referees together with the video officials at the FIFA broadcast center in Dallas.

According to the report, Evans, who stood behind the two video referees, made a gesture with his thumb and index finger touching and the other fingers extended, held it while smiling for about four more seconds, and then turned away ahead of the opening whistle. The entire moment lasted only about four seconds on screen, but it quickly went viral worldwide.

The symbol is sometimes used as an innocent joke between friends, but it is also associated with white supremacy because the hand shape can be read as the letters W and P for “White Power.” Online commenters also linked the gesture to the Illuminati and to Satanism. The article says the gesture has fueled questions about whether it was a deliberate signal or just a joke.

The New York Post contacted FIFA for comment, but no response had been received at the time of publication. The report was published on June 15, 2026, at 10:13.