British singer Robbie Williams has found himself in a deep pot of hot water after he apparently flipped the bird to TV viewers during last night’s opening ceremony for the FIFA World Cup in Moscow, Russia.

Williams was halfway through a rather lacklustre performance of his past hits when he apparently decided to give the one billion-plus TV audience the finger.

Fans immediately roasted the 44-year-old’s behaviour on Twitter, while in worse news for Williams, it’s being reported he now risks facing arrest and a fine by Russian authorities if it is proved he meant it as an insult.

The fine could be as high as $A10,600 if he was prosecuted and found guilty of outraging public decency. Check out Robbie’s move below:

And World Cup fans were none to happy with Williams’ provocative gesticulation, particularly those watching at home with children.

Fans blasted him for a “lack of morals” and “desperate for attention”. While the Russians – who reportedly spent $A14 billion to host the event – will be less than happy that that Williams’ antics have hogged the headlines rather than the actual opening ceremony.

One fan tweeted: “Worst opening performance ever at a FIFA World Cup goes to Robbie Williams #WorldCup.”

While another added: “What a joke! Watching with my kids and that happened? Wow.”

While others thought the former Take That star was an odd choice for the Cup opener anyway and felt a local Russian act should have got the gig. “Robbie Williams is an extremely dubious choice to open the World Cup,” a fan tweeted.