Oscar Cosic and Luka Jurkovic among those charged with Nazi salute

At least two Geelong region soccer players will face court over an alleged Nazi salute.

Former North Geelong player Luka Jurkovic is among the men charged. Picture: Mark Wilson.

At least two soccer players from the Geelong region are among seven men who will front court later this year after being charged with performing a Nazi gesture.

Oscar Cosic, who recently re-signed with the North Geelong Warriors, is among six names that appear on the Geelong Magistrates’ Court list for May 6.

It’s understood Mr Cosic has been stood down by the club, with all mention of him on its online channels deleted.

The club was contacted for comment, but has remained tight lipped as to whether the removal of his name from club media is in relation to the police investigation.

Also among the names listed was Luka Jurkovic, who played for the Surf Coast Football Club in 2024.

Surf Coast Football Club announced the re-signing of Jurkovic in February, but said he had not officially registered with the club. Picture: Facebook.

Surf Coast posted on its Facebook page in February that Mr Jurkovic had re-signed, however, the club said he had not officially registered and was therefore not an official member.

The club reaffirmed this point in an online post Monday morning.

“Surf Coast Football Club is aware of an article mentioning individuals who previously played for our club and are now involved in a police investigation,” it said.

“These individuals are not members of our club in 2025 and have no current affiliation with us.”

Mr Jurkovic is also a former North Geelong Warriors player.

Another name on the list is Liam Saric, who appeared in another image of the group at the same venue at a different time and has links to the Warriors.

In that image, which was shared on a social media account bearing Mr Saric’s name with Nazi skull images known as Totenkompf’s covering people’s faces, was at least one other North Geelong senior player sitting next to Mr Saric.

The unobscured image has been seen by the Geelong Advertiser.

Nicholas Volarevic, Luka Volarevic and Christopher Jurkovic are also named on the court list.

Liam Saric also appears in this image, sitting next to a senior North Geelong Warriors player, both with their faces obscured by a well-known Nazi symbol.

On Tuesday, police confirmed seven men had been charged with displaying Nazi gestures at the Croatian Club in Bell Park earlier this month.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of 12 months’ jail and a fine of almost $24,000.

Anti-Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich welcomed the charges.

“The days of getting away with this poison are over,” Dr Abramovich said.

“This isn’t just a charge, it’s a reckoning.

“These men raised their arms to hate, and now they will be dragged before the courts to answer for it.

“Every salute they threw up was a slap in the face to Holocaust survivors – well, now the law is slapping back.”

This image emerged on a Facebook group about 6.30pm appearing to people linked to the North Geelong Warriors football club performing the salutes at Croatian Club on Separation St.

A police spokesman said the charges came after an “extensive investigation into an image circulating online which depicted a group of men performing the prohibited gesture”.

“There is absolutely no place in our society for anti-Semitic, racist or hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated,” he said.

Football Victoria was contacted for comment.

Originally published as Oscar Cosic and Luka Jurkovic among those charged with Nazi salute