( CNN ) -- West Bromwich Albion may have thought they had done smart business when signing Nicolas Anelka on a free transfer last year , but he cost them dear on Monday . The Frenchman 's controversial `` quenelle '' gesture in December has prompted the club 's main sponsor to announce an end to their ongoing deal . After weeks of inactivity because of injury , Anelka celebrated his first English Premier League ( EPL ) goals of the season , against West Ham , by making a gesture that many believe is a Nazi salute in reverse . Linked to rising anti-Semitism in France , the `` quenelle '' has sat uncomfortably with West Brom 's club sponsors Zoopla , a property website co-owned by a Jewish businessman , Alex Chesterman . On Monday , Zoopla said it will not renew its two-year deal beyond the end of the current season , so turning down the possibility of a one-year extension with the team lying thirteenth in the EPL . `` Zoopla has been reviewing its position over the past few weeks in light of the actions of striker , Nicolas Anelka , during the match against West Ham over the Christmas period and has decided to focus its attention on other marketing activities after this season , '' the company said in a statement . Anelka has insisted that the gesture , which involves pointing the right arm straight down and touching that arm with the left hand , was a dedication to his friend -- controversial French comedian Dieudonne M'Bala M'Bala , with whom the move is widely associated . `` ( The ) meaning ( of ) quenelle : anti-system . I do not know what the word religion has to do with this story ! Of course , I am neither racist nor anti-Semitic , '' the footballer tweeted after the incident . Media reports in England last week had suggested that Zoopla wanted Anelka to be dropped for Monday night 's match against Everton but the forward started a game that ended 1-1 . When West Brom announced the partnership with Zoopla in May 2012 , an official described it as `` the most comprehensive deal in the club 's history . '' The club reacted to Zoopla 's statement by saying it had been aware that the sponsorship deal could end at the end of the current season and so `` has been planning accordingly '' . Anelka is not the only sports star to be embroiled in controversy over the `` quenelle '' . Several other French athletes -- basketballer Tony Parker as well as footballers Samir Nasri and Mamadou Sakho -- all having apologized for any offense caused when they were pictured making the gesture . It was popularized by Dieudonne , who ran in the European elections as an anti-Zionist and who has been fined several times in France for anti-Semitic commentary , a charge over which the 47-year-old faces an investigation by the Paris prosecutor 's office . The French government recently banned one of Dieudonne 's live performances , successfully doing so in Nantes earlier this month despite some intense legal wrangling . Anelka , meanwhile , is still waiting to hear his fate as the English Football Association concludes its investigation into the incident , which could result in a lengthy playing ban . After making the gesture at an EPL match in London on December 28 , Anelka agreed to a West Brom request to avoid any repetition of the gesture .
West Brom lose backing of sponsor Nike in protest over Anelka goal ##keeping . The ` ` quenelle '' is seen by many as having anti - Semitic meaning . Zoopla is co - owned by Jewish businessman Alex Chesterman .