Republic of Ireland vs France was a
two-legged football play-off held on 14
and 18 November 2009 between the
national teams of the Republic of
Ireland and France as part of the UEFA
second round of qualification for the
2010 FIFA World Cup. The first match was
held on 14 November in Croke Park,
Dublin, Ireland, and ended in a 1–0
victory for France with Nicolas Anelka
scoring. The second leg, played on 18
November in the Stade de France outside
Paris, France, finished in a 1–1 tie,
meaning that France progressed to the
World Cup at Ireland's expense based on
the aggregate score.
After the second leg, the French captain
Thierry Henry admitted to Irish defender
Richard Dunne that he had illegally
handled the ball in the build-up to
Gallas's match-winning goal, which had
been scored in extra time with 17
minutes remaining in the game.
The incident led to calls from the
Football Association of Ireland and
Government of Ireland to the world
governing body FIFA for the result to be
set aside and for the game to be
replayed, and later for Ireland to be
allowed to enter the World Cup as an
unprecedented supernumerary 33rd team.
Henry, previously seen by many in the
sport as a fair footballer, was
characterised as cheating, with the
incident being compared to Diego
Maradona's "Hand of God" goal, and TIME
magazine comparing Henry's goal to a top
ten list of sporting cheats. Henry
considered retiring from international
football due to the reactions to the
game, while the Swedish match referee
Martin Hansson considered quitting as a
referee.
The result sparked debate on the issue
of fair play in football, and fuelled
the ongoing debate on the introduction
of video refereeing and Additional
Assistant Referees into the sport. At an
emergency meeting of the FIFA Executive
Committee called in part as a result of
the handball controversy, FIFA announced
it was setting up an inquiry into the
options for technology or extra
officials in football, but ruled out any
changes being introduced in time for the
2010 World Cup. Henry's case was passed
to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee for
investigation, which ruled that it could
not sanction Henry under the text of the
FIFA Disciplinary Code.
Route to the matches 
The qualification process for the 2010
FIFA World Cup in South Africa began in
2007, and as Europe-affiliated teams
France and the Republic of Ireland
became two of 53 teams competing for 13
places in the finals.
Under the rules for the 2010 tournament,
UEFA qualification was a two-stage
process, as had previously been the case
for qualification in 2006. Teams were
able to qualify automatically by winning
one of nine qualifying groups, and a
second chance to qualify was given to
eight of the nine second-place finishers
via a knock-out phase of four games
between those eight second-placed teams,
contested over two legs, home and away,
with the winners of each pairing being
awarded one of the four remaining UEFA
qualifying places. Both France and the
Republic of Ireland failed to qualify as
winners of their first-round groups, but
both teams finished in second place with
enough points to allow them to advance
to the second round.
FIFA announced on 29 September 2009 that
it would modify the draw system used to
select second-round pairings by
introducing a seeding system. In the
draw, held in Zürich on 19 October, the
eight teams were divided into two pots
of four; France were seeded along with
Greece, Portugal and Russia, while
Ireland was unseeded, alongside Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Ukraine.
Ireland was drawn to play France, with
the first of their two games to be
played in Ireland on 14 November 2009.
The way the seeding process was handled
led some to claim at the time that UEFA
had changed the rules halfway through to
favour to the higher profile teams like
France and Portugal, preferring them to
qualify over "smaller" nations.
The 18 November date of the second leg
of the France vs Republic of Ireland
play-off in Saint-Denis coincided with
the date of a number of other World Cup
qualification matches around the world,
marking the completion of the entire
qualification process for 2010. With
their win, France ultimately joined
Algeria, Greece, Slovenia, Portugal and
Uruguay as the last of the 32
competitors in South Africa.
Under the agreed tie-break criteria, the
team scoring more goals on aggregate
wins the play-off. If scores are level
on aggregate, the team with the higher
number of away goals advances. If teams
are level on away goals, 30 minutes of
extra time is played. If the score is
level after extra time, the match goes
to penalties.
Pre-match 
= Venue selection =
The Dublin leg of the tie was held at
Croke Park instead of the Republic of
Ireland's traditional home venue of
Lansdowne Road, owing to ongoing
redevelopment of that venue as the Aviva
Stadium. The French leg was held at
Stade de France, the French team's
national stadium near Paris.
= Analysis =
Before 1990, the Republic of Ireland had
never qualified for the FIFA World Cup
finals, while France's best record was
two third-place finishes, in 1958 and
1986. Between 1990 and 2006, the
Republic of Ireland and France had each
qualified for three finals tournaments.
The two teams' records for the
tournament were as follows:
Matches 
= Dublin leg =
Summary 
The Republic of Ireland team chose a
balanced 4-4-2 formation, while the
French team opted for their customary
4-2-3-1 formation, favouring offensive
play over defence.
Details 
= Saint-Denis leg =
Summary 
A controversial instance of misconduct
occurred during extra time in the second
leg of the two-legged tie, when the
overall score was standing at 1–1 on
aggregate. French player Florent Malouda
took a free kick just outside the centre
circle in the Irish half of the field.
He lofted it toward French captain
Thierry Henry, who was making a run in
the penalty area to Irish goalkeeper
Shay Given's right-hand side. The ball
bounced once to Henry, now inside the
goal area to the left of the goal. As it
bounced upwards, Henry handled the ball
twice with his left hand, stopping it
going out of play and bringing the ball
under control, before tapping the ball
with the outside of his right foot past
Given standing at the near goal post.
The ball travelled the short distance to
William Gallas arriving in the middle of
the goal, who headed the ball into the
Irish net.
The referee immediately signalled the
goal as being valid. Irish players
inside the penalty box appealed the
decision by raising their arms, and as
Henry wheeled away in celebration around
the back of the Irish goal, Given ran to
the referee gesticulating that a
handball offence had occurred, while
Irish manager Giovanni Trapattoni did
the same to the fourth official.
The handball offence was not seen by the
referee or his two assistants, according
to the BBC. The match officials also
missed an offside during the same phase
of play.
Details 
Post-match 
= View of match participants =
Thierry Henry 
Henry told a reporter after the
incident, "Yes, there was hand, but I'm
not the referee. 'Toto' was going for
the front, I was behind two Irishmen,
the ball ricocheted and hit my hand. Of
course, I continued to play... The
referee did not whistle 'hand' but I
can't say there wasn't hand." Henry
later defended himself against
criticism, stating, "Obviously I would
have preferred that things panned out
differently but I am not the official. I
do not think we have stolen
qualification".
After FIFA denied the Football
Association of Ireland request for a
replay, Henry released a statement.
The fairest solution would be to replay
the game but it is not in my
control...Naturally I feel embarrassed
at the way that we won and feel
extremely sorry for the Irish who
definitely deserve to be in South
Africa...I have said at the time and I
will say again that 'yes' I handled the
ball. I am not a cheat and never have
been. It was an instinctive reaction to
a ball that was coming extremely fast in
a crowded penalty area....As a
footballer you do not have the luxury of
the television to slow the pace of the
ball down 100 times to be able to make a
conscious decision...People are viewing
a slow motion version of what happened
and not what I or any other footballer
faces in the game. If people look at it
in full speed you will see that it was
an instinctive reaction.
Henry said that he had considered
quitting international football after
the reactions to the incident, but was
persuaded not to by friends and family.
He criticised the French Football
Federation for their lack of support in
the aftermath of the controversy. He
regretted the immediate celebration of
the goal but put it down to the emotion
of the moment, and reflected that not
informing the referee had been a
mistake. On the issue of lasting impact
of the incident, Henry said "I don't
think that all I have achieved in my
career up until now will be spoiled by
this".
Henry later called FIFA President Sepp
Blatter over the incident. Blatter
stated Henry had told him his family had
been threatened over the incident by
fans.
Match referee 
The match was officiated by a Swedish
team. Martin Hansson was the match
referee, assisted by his two assistant
referees, Fredrik Nilsson and Stefan
Wittberg.
Referee Hansson told Sveriges Radio
Blekinge "I cannot comment on the game
itself but life must go on. I will ride
this storm as well". In his first
substantial comment on the incident,
Hansson spoke to the regional Swedish
newpspaper Sydöstran on 24 November.
While repeating the fact that FIFA rules
prevented him commenting on the game
until the investigation concluded, he
said the incident was neither his or his
referee team's fault. Referring to a
graphic illustration printed earlier in
The Times and reproduced in some Swedish
newspapers, he said "[the graphic]
clears the whole refereeing team in this
incident". The picture, titled 'Why the
referee missed it', purported to show
how neither the referee or the assistant
referee could have seen the handball
incident, due to the presence of three
Irish players blocking Hansson's view
from his position on the edge of the
penalty area, and Irish goalkeeper Shay
Given's position obscuring the sightline
of the assistant referee, Nilsson, who
was standing on the right hand
touchline. He also stated that the
reaction to the game had made him
consider quitting his job as a referee.
On 21 June, during the World Cup finals,
Hansson said, "After the game, we were
sitting in the dressing room and I
cried. I realized what a mistake it
was."
Team managers 
Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni
stated he did not blame Henry, nor did
he expect a replay would occur, but he
did believe the incident would bring
further pressure on FIFA to introduce
goal-line technology, stating "There is
a 30-second stop and we clarify the
situation...I'm sure in the future they
will have to do something about it. It
wasn't up to Henry to say 'I touched it
with my hand". Trapattoni also
questioned the selection of the match
referee, stating "For this important
game we needed a stronger referee – an
important referee", and went on to also
question the format of the qualifying
round matches.
French team manager Raymond Domenech
said of the game, "I don't see what we
could have done better...We needed to
qualify and we did that, even if it was
painful. Victories like this one, at the
end of a difficult campaign, give this
side heart and soul", although criticism
in France of his team, which had existed
before the game, continued. Domenech
later criticised the condemnation of
Henry and France, and questioned the
right of former French players like
Cantona and Lizarazu to criticise his
record as the French coach.
Other players 
Ireland captain and scorer of Ireland's
goal in the controversial match Robbie
Keane criticised the presidents of FIFA
and UEFA following the result, claiming
they would be 'delighted' that France
had gone through. He told BBC Radio Five
Live, "They're all probably clapping
hands, Platini sitting up there on the
phone to Sepp Blatter, probably texting
each other, delighted with the result."
After Henry's statement, Keane concurred
with his call for a replay in the
interest of fair play, stating "On
behalf of the Republic of Ireland
players, I would like to thank Thierry
Henry... As captain of the French team,
to make such a statement took courage
and honour, and all of us recognise
that".
In general, the Irish players blamed the
officials rather than Henry. Damien Duff
admitted he would have done the same had
it been to Ireland's advantage, and
said: "If it was down the other end and
it was going out of play, I would have
chanced my arm. You can't blame him.
He's a clever player – but you expect
the ref to see it, it was so blatant."
Many players, including Duff, supported
call for the introduction of video
technology. Seán St Ledger hoped France
would be put in a 'group of death' in
the World Cup draw, but feared they
might go on to win the tournament.
Defender Richard Dunne later spoke of
how he was unaware of the extent of
Henry's involvement when he sat down
with him on the pitch at the end of the
match and admitted the handball. Dunne
properly viewed the incident for the
first time on a computer in his team's
dressing room. He also described how
"heartbreaking" the whole experience
was, his lack of interest in the draw or
who France's opponents might be in the
finals and how "disappointing" it would
be when the tournament eventually took
place.
Given was critical of Sepp Blatter's
later actions, stating his various
announcements "rubbed salt in the
wounds" and his contradictory comments
about Henry were "beyond a joke". He
expressed doubt he would get over the
incident in his lifetime. Of Henry, he
said "I'm not saying he's a cheat but
what he's done is illegal".
Dunne was later critical of Blatter's
offer of moral compensation, describing
it as "taking the mickey". He doubted
Robbie Keane would be going to FIFA to
collect any such award. He reiterated
the belief that ever since the earlier
seedings controversy, FIFA had been
showing France unfair favour.
= Action taken =
FAI appeal 
The FAI filed a formal complaint with
FIFA and the FFF, stating, "The handball
was recognised by the FIFA commissioner,
the referee observer and the match
officials, as well as by the player
himself." The FAI cited precedent for
the invalidation of the result, using
the example of a previous World Cup
qualification match between Uzbekistan
and Bahrain, overturned by FIFA due to a
'technical error by the referee of the
match'. In that game, the referee had
failed to have a penalty kick re-taken
after an attacker encroached on the
penalty area. FAI chief executive John
Delaney said "It is up to the people who
govern the game now, if they really
believe in the principles of fair play
then step forward....If we had qualified
in this manner, I wouldn't be happy" The
president of the Jean-Pierre Escalettes
said "You have to take a philosophical
approach to this match."
On 20 November, FIFA rejected the
request for a replay, stating to the
FAI:
The result of the match cannot be
changed and the match cannot be
replayed. As is clearly mentioned in the
Laws of the Game, during matches,
decisions are taken by the referee and
these decisions are final.
After FIFA and Thierry Henry's
statement, the FAI urged the FFF to
respect their views and those of the
captains of both teams, to replay the
game to "protect the integrity of the
game worldwide". The FFF, while
sympathetic, endorsed the FIFA ruling.
Following the FFF's refusal to support a
replay, the FAI expressed "deep
disappointment".
= FAI proposals and 33rd team place =
At the request of the FAI, Sepp Blatter
met an Irish delegation in Zürich for 90
minutes on Friday 27 November. The FAI
proposed a number of ways the incident
could be prevented in future and,
agreeing that the match could not be
replayed, they instead also officially
requested to be allowed to enter the
World Cup as an unprecedented extra 33rd
entrant. Blatter stated that he would
raise the Irish request at an
extraordinary general meeting of the
FIFA executive committee. RTÉ Sport
speculated that the request would be
"politely turned down". The request drew
'laughter' when he relayed it to the
Soccerex conference the following
Monday. Blatter was of the opinion that
if the Republic of Ireland were admitted
as an extra entrant, Costa Rica would
also have to be considered as well,
having also been unfairly eliminated by
an offside goal in a play-off against
Uruguay in the CONCACAF v CONMEBOL
play-off. FIFA secretary-general Jerome
Valcke had ruled it out on 1 December,
one day before the meeting, clarifying
that Blatter's comments regarding other
teams had already shown the request was
"impossible" and had "no hope" of being
granted. According to The Guardian on 30
November, the Irish had not expected the
request to be successful, but they had
also "asked FIFA to consider
compensating them in some other way,
perhaps by seeding them in the draw for
the 2014 World Cup".
The FAI's proposals included: no changes
to competition formats mid-tournament,
introduce video technology at the
highest level, implement additional
assistant referees behind the goal line
for all international matches, introduce
stronger sanctions for players who
breach the Laws of the Game in a "match
defining way", and issuing a statement
that "FIFA does not condone breaches" of
those Laws, referring to Sepp Blatter's
previous statements of empathy with
Henry. The FAI stated they did not ask
for any action to be taken against
Henry.
Delaney reacted angrily to Blatter's
public disclosure of what was intended
to be a confidential submission to the
FIFA executive committee, complaining to
the FIFA general secretary and calling
it "disrespectful to our country", and
stating the 33rd team proposal had been
"very much peripheral" to their
suggestions, and was only discussed "for
a minute or two" in the meeting. The FAI
asserted that the 33rd place request had
not even been included in any of the
written submissions to FIFA.
Sepp Blatter 
Blatter had initially faced criticism
for refusing to comment on the incident.
His first comments came with a report in
L'Équipe, and during his opening address
at the Soccerex football conference in
Johannesburg, South Africa, both on
Sunday 29 November.
Blatter said that it had not been
Henry's responsibility to tell the
referee of the misdemeanour, comparing a
similar incident in his own playing
career, when he did not tell the referee
about an advantage gained by
shirt-pulling. Blatter said that referee
Hansson "should have taken the time to
reflect rather than immediately awarding
the goal".
On the issue of fair play, Blatter said
"There is a lack of discipline and
respect in the game by the players
because they are cheating" and "How can
it happen that all over the world,
through TV cameras, we have seen through
a cheating handball that a pass was
given for a goal? Everyone is asking
what is and what isn't fair play. The
highest crime in football is touching
the ball with the hands". Referring to
the possibility of using assistant
referees or goal line technology,
Blatter stated, "match control is now is
on the agenda. How shall we avoid such
situations as we have seen in this very
specific match?" Blatter repeated his
stated opposition to video refereeing,
saying, "With technology, you have to
stop a match. You have a look at
cameras... We have to maintain the human
face of football and not go into
technology."
On the issue of fair play at the World
Cup, Blatter commented after the FIFA
executive committee's EGM:
I appeal to all the players and coaches
to observe this fair play. In 2010 we
want to prove that football is more than
just kicking a ball but has social and
cultural value... So we ask the players
'please observe fair play' so they will
be an example to the rest of the world
Blatter apologised to the FAI on 2
December for the public disclosure of
the FAI's submission to FIFA and for the
media's perception of his comments at
Soccerex, saying, "I have nothing
against the Irish, they were very
sporting people when they came to FIFA
and it is a pity that it has been now
communicated in this way." After the
EGM, John Delaney described FIFA as the
"biggest losers" in the controversy for
having "made one mistake after another",
referring to the mid-competition change
in seeding rules for the play-off, the
negative imagery of football as a whole
generated by FIFA's actions and Henry's
goal, and Sepp Blatter's subsequent
dealings with the FAI.
FIFA executive committee 
On 23 November FIFA announced that the
FIFA executive committee would hold an
extraordinary general meeting on 2
December in Cape Town, where members
were already due to meet to discuss the
seedings for the World Cup, in order to
discuss various recent incidents
affecting the world game. According to
BBC Radio 5 Live sports news
correspondent Gordon Farquhar, the Henry
incident would be "high on the agenda".
Gordon Smith, the chief executive of the
Scottish Football Association and a
member of the International Football
Association Board, believed that
introduction of AARs in time for the
World Cup would be pressed for at the
EGM by UEFA president Michel Platini,
who had been a long-time supporter of
the concept; Smith said of the proposal,
"I feel that it has its advantages at
the highest levels of the games. When
there's massive TV coverage the problems
are highlighted all over the world so
this is something we may have to look
at." The FAI was to be given the chance
to present their views at the EGM, with
Delaney hoping it would not be a "token"
gesture, criticising the lack of direct
contact from FIFA. FIFA President Sepp
Blatter confirmed on 30 November that
the EGM would consider the use of AARs
and goal-line technology in the 2010
World Cup, and changing the two-legged
play-off qualification format, possibly
in favour of a single game played at a
neutral venue.
The EGM was held on 2 December at the
Cape Town International Convention
Centre. The executive committee at the
time consisted of FIFA president Sepp
Blatter, eight vice-presidents and 15
members, and the FIFA general secretary
Jérôme Valcke. The membership included
representatives of various
confederations and associations around
the world. In response to Blatter's
comments at Soccerex and before the EGM,
the FAI formally notified FIFA in
writing that they were withdrawing their
request to enter the World Cup as a 33rd
team, and accordingly this matter was
not considered. The FAI's other
suggestions were, however, discussed.
According to FIFA, the EGM discussion
resulted in "concrete proposals" to
ensure that improvements were made on
the issues raised. According to Blatter,
the committee recognised the game was at
a "crossroads" and that, at the highest
levels, where 32 cameras were to be used
to film the 2010 World Cup, it was now
"impossible" for just the referee and
his two assistants to "see everything".
The EGM announced that FIFA would be
setting up an inquiry into future use of
extra assistants and technology. The new
inquiry would, according to Blatter,
"have a look at technology or additional
persons". Described as a "full inquiry"
or "working party" by media
commentators, it was to comprise a new
FIFA committee with input drawn in part
from the existing FIFA referees',
football, technical and medical
committees.
The expected introduction of AARs for
the 2010 World Cup was ruled out. The
committee "stressed that it would be too
soon to implement this new system at the
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa."
Blatter explained that, as AARs had not
yet been trialled outside of Europe, the
committee was of the opinion that any
experiment must be carried out
"globally" before it could be used in a
World Cup. Blatter confirmed that the
experiment with AAR's in the Europa
League would continue into the 2010
knock-out stages. The meeting also ruled
out the use of video refereeing systems
similar to those seen in rugby, cricket
and tennis. Blatter stated that two
companies investigating goal-line
technology were due to report their
results to International Football
Association Board in March 2010. FIFA
also called on the general secretaries
of the Continental Federations to
propose improvements to the format of
the qualification and play-off phase of
the World Cup competition, for
submission by March 2010.
Henry disciplinary investigation 
On the issue of possible disciplinary
sanctions against Henry individually, a
FIFA spokesperson stated "The
[independent] disciplinary
commission...will decide if the case is
of interest [when they meet sometime in
the next two weeks]. The possibility
exists of sanctioning a player for
unsporting behaviour on the basis of
video evidence". Examples of FIFA
disciplinary action taken against
players for incidents missed by the
referee based on video evidence include
banning Mauro Tassotti for eight games
for use of an elbow during the 1994
World Cup quarter-final, and banning
Marco Materazzi for two games for his
verbal provocation of Zinedine Zidane in
the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final, resulting
in the infamous headbutting incident.
On 2 December after the FIFA EGM it was
announced that FIFA's disciplinary
committee would open an investigation
into Henry's handball. No timetable was
given for when the investigation,
chaired by Swiss lawyer Marcel Mathier,
would rule on the case.
Blatter said of the decision to single
out Henry for investigation of a
handball:
I have not said that Thierry Henry will
be punished, I have said that Thierry
Henry will be examined [by the
committee]...it's not a question of this
player or another – it was blatant
unfair play and was seen all around the
world...let [the committee] make the
decision. Fair play must be maintained
in our game
According to the Associated Press, the
committee had the "authority to impose a
one-match suspension on Henry, which
would take effect at the start of the
World Cup in June". According to the
BBC, FIFA said "there was no certainty
Henry would be banned if found guilty".
On 18 January 2010 it was announced that
Henry would face no sanctions in
relation to the incident, after the
committee found it had "no legal
foundation" to deal with the case, as
the relevant rules only covered
sanctions for preventing a goal by
illegally handling the ball. FIFA rules
reportedly forbade any other action as
the referee had not seen the original
incident. FIFA released the following
statement:
the Disciplinary Committee reached the
conclusion that there was no legal
foundation for the committee to consider
the case because handling the ball
cannot be regarded as a serious
infringement as stipulated in article
77a of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. There
is no other legal text that would allow
the committee to impose sanctions for
any incidents missed by match officials.
The FFF president Jean-Pierre Escalettes
hoped the announcement would mark the
end of the incident, stating of the
decision that is "not astonishing, it is
logical".
France national team 
FIFA secretary general Jérôme Valcke
later denied that France's absence from
the top 8 seeded teams for the 2010
World Cup draw had been a result of the
controversy, stating that the change to
the seeding system was fairer than past
systems. The FFF president described the
decision as logical, although former
French coach Michel Hidalgo disagreed.
In a quirk of the resulting draw, the
lack of seeding ultimately did not have
a detrimental effect on France, as they
were drawn into Group A; since the
seeding place in Group A had already
been allocated to the host nation South
Africa, a Group A draw was the only
possible outcome where France would not
have been placed into a group with one
of the top seven seeded teams. South
Africa were ranked 86th in the world at
the time, making them the lowest-ranked
team competing in the tournament; The
Irish Times commented that this turn of
events in France's favour would cause
the Irish to feel particularly
aggrieved. At the finals, France
ultimately failed to qualify from their
group, failing to win a game and
managing only a solitary point in their
first match against Uruguay; following a
major disruption at the team's camp by
the French players.
France and the Republic of Ireland did
not meet in the qualifying matches for
the 2012 European Championships. France
were drawn in Group D while Ireland were
drawn in Group B, although they were
drawn together in the practice run for
the draw held the day before.
FAI compensation 
After the FIFA EGM, John Delaney said,
"In terms of the football side, this is
the end of the matter", but that "the
incident will linger long in the memory
like Diego Maradona's handball." Delaney
hoped the promise of an inquiry into
refereeing and technology was "not a
fudge." The FAI and FIFA were however
due to meet again after the EGM
according to Blatter, to discuss some
form of non-financial compensation for
the controversy. On 4 June 2015 it
emerged during an RTÉ interview that
FIFA had bought the FAI's silence with a
€5 million payment which would prevent
any legal action against them.
Match officials 
In January 2010, match referee Hansson
and his assistant Stefan Wittberg were
both selected as one of the thirty
officiating teams to be used at the 2010
World Cup; however, Hansson's other
assistant on the day of the incident,
Fredrik Nilsson who missed the handball,
was not selected, being replaced by
Henrik Andren. FIFA had insisted at the
time of the incident that, since
selection of referees for the World Cup
referee was based on long-term
assessments, Hansson would probably make
it to the finals. UEFA president Michel
Platini called it a good decision,
defending Hansson as having not been
responsible for the incident as he had
not seen the handball.
= Reaction =
The incident has been compared to
Maradona's infamous "Hand of God" goal
in the 1986 World Cup, which led to the
incident being labelled as the "Hand of
Frog" the "Hand of Gaul" and the "Hand
of Henry" affair.
Governments and politicians 
Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen called on
FIFA for a replay, stating that "fair
play is a fundamental part of the game".
Cowen raised the issue with French
President Nicolas Sarkozy while both
were at the European Union summit in
Brussels on 19 November 2009. After the
summit, Sarkozy stated, "I told Brian
Cowen how sorry I was for them...But
don't ask me to substitute myself for
the referee, or the French football
authorities, or the European football
authorities."
The incident was criticised in Dáil
Éireann, the lower house of the Irish
Parliament. The Irish Minister for
Justice Dermot Ahern called on FIFA to
act in the interests of fair play. The
French Prime Minister François Fillon
stated that the 'Irish government should
not interfere in footballing decisions'.
Rama Yade, French Secretary of State for
Sports, and FFF vice-president Noël Le
Graët both defended Henry from
accusations of intentional cheating,
pointing to his playing record, and
stating that he should be presumed
innocent unless he stated he
deliberately set out to cheat. The
French Sports Minister Roselyne Bachelot
and Christine Lagarde Minister of
Economic Affairs were sympathetic to the
Irish viewpoint.
Sports administrators 
On the eve of Henry's possible
punishment being discussed at the FIFA
EGM, FFF technical director Gérard
Houllier defended Henry, stating the
handball was instinctive and that the
blame lay with the referee, pointing out
that had the goal not been scored, the
match would still have gone to
penalties. Houllier also called for the
introduction of video refereeing.
According to The Independent, the
organiser of the 2010 World Cup Danny
Jordaan resisted calls for video
refereeing and believed that 'disputed
decisions should be considered part of
football'. Leslie Irvine, the Northern
Irish former referee and FIFA instructor
on the referee selection panel for the
2010 World Cup, was of the opinion that
referee Hansson was not to blame for the
incident, as by simply not seeing the
incident he had not committed a
'technical infringement', and said
Thierry Henry bore "moral
responsibility" for the controversy.
Jacques Rogge, president of the
International Olympic Committee praised
Henry's decision to express his regrets
over the affair, but declined to comment
further, having not seen the incident.
On the eve of the FIFA EGM, FIFA
Secretary General Jérôme Valcke, while
lamenting the fact that after 853
matches in the qualifying process, only
one was being talked about, he said
"It's important to make sure what
happened will not happen again".
Football personalities 
While in Dublin on 26 November for a
charity event, Pelé said "maybe the
linesman could help, but even the
linesman doesn't see the game. We say
fair play, but you know I don't think it
was unfair, something that goes in one
second... The result was unfair, but
unfortunately you can't change that"
Football pundits Johnny Giles, Eamon
Dunphy and Graeme Souness, analysing the
video replays on RTÉ Two, disputed
whether Shay Given or anybody else was
obscuring the view of the assistant
referee from seeing the incident,
although they were not certain the
assistant could have flagged with
certainty for handball even if he had a
clear line of sight, due to the speed of
the incident and flight of the ball.
Former Irish international and football
pundit Mark Lawrenson said "The man
cheated. He controlled the ball with the
second handball. It is a Maradona
moment". Another former Irish
international Tony Cascarino wrote in
The Times that Henry "speaks so
eloquently, but to me now he'll always
be insincere, a faker, someone who cares
only about himself". Former French
international David Ginola said "I'm
very embarrassed by the situation...I
don’t feel very proud to be French this
morning. The Irish played very well and
they deserved to go through as much as
France, maybe more. I'm very surprised
FIFA haven't mentioned anything about it
– the whole world saw the handball. This
is a pure injustice. Everyone in France,
the press and everyone, says there
should be a replay". Former Ireland
captain Roy Keane said the attempt by
the FAI to get a replay was "rubbish",
telling them to "get over it", that
France were there for the taking and
Ireland should not have allowed Henry to
be in such a good position in the first
place. Keane later apologised to any
Irish fans offended by his "over the
top" comments.
Henry's former France teammate Bixente
Lizarazu stated "It was not something to
be proud of. I'm not going to party."
Henry's former Arsenal and France
teammate Emmanuel Petit wrote that "The
feeling among the French public on
Thursday morning was one of
embarrassment – we didn't want to
qualify in controversial circumstances,
we wanted to beat Ireland by playing
within the rules" and "Thierry's
handball will not send out a good
message", but he was of the opinion that
this "very rare indiscretion" would not
damage his reputation, explaining that
"There is a referee on the pitch and if
he didn't see that's not France's
problem." Petit later criticised FIFA
and UEFA for their lack of support for
Henry, and believed that Henry had saved
Raymond Domenech's job. French player
Patrice Evra questioned the patriotism
of those French people attacking Henry,
and was of the opinion that those same
people would have criticised Henry had
he informed the referee he had committed
handball. Former French captain Patrick
Vieira blamed the referee for the
controversy, and supported the idea of
video refereeing or having a fifth
referee to assist in games. Former
French international Eric Cantona was
critical of Domenech, and referring to
Henry's immediate post-match act of
consoling an Irish player, said "If I'd
been Irish, he wouldn't have lasted
three seconds."
Another former Arsenal teammate Lee
Dixon wrote that Henry had gone down in
a lot of Arsenal fans' estimations, and
Henry "has been a truly great footballer
– one of the best players we've ever
seen in the Premier League – but now
people will remember him for that goal
against Ireland. It's really sad".
England footballer David Beckham
defended Henry, stating "I honestly
didn't think Thierry meant it...I know
him as a player and a person. He's a
good person and a great player... these
things happen in football"
Henry's former Arsenal manager and
Frenchman Arsène Wenger said of the
incident that "This isn't the French way
and football should learn from this",
although he theorised that Henry did not
inform the referee due to "the pressure
and what's at stake". Wenger later
added, "For the sense of justice it is
quite embarrassing to see...I think even
France is embarrassed...we won the game
and won the qualification with a goal
that was not a goal". Wenger believed
Henry, who was one of the "fairest
[players] I've managed", was being
unfairly left to face criticism by
France, and that the real issue was the
lack of technology being in place.
Manchester United manager Sir Alex
Ferguson was of the opinion that "every
player and manager in the world" thinks
that "technology can play a part" to
help referees, but recognised that it
was FIFA who had to be convinced.
Henry's club manager of Barcelona, Josep
Guardiola said as Henry returned to
training in Spain that he "is not proud
to have done that, but it wasn't
premeditated", and gave guarded support
for use of video refereeing. German
Robert Huth expressed sympathy with the
Irish, but on the merits of a replay,
contrasted the lack of a replay after
the controversial goal in the 1966 World
Cup Final. Danish goalkeeper Brian
Jensen said "He didn't do it on purpose?
Blah blah blah. My 'beep'. I won't say
the word cheats – but ... I said it".
Thierry Roland, described by the Times
as the "doyen of French TV football
commentators", said of the game "It's a
scandal, a shame with a capital S."
Media 
According to the BBC, the game
"attracted mass news coverage across
Europe". Agence France-Presse described
how the result of the game sparked an
"international outcry" and how as a
result of the handball, Henry had been
"pilloried as a cheat around the globe".
TIME magazine immediately named Henry as
number 1 in a List of Sporting Cheats,
ahead of Crashgate, Black Sox Scandal,
Ben Johnson, Tonya Harding, Doping in
East Germany, Rivaldo at the 2002 World
Cup, Boris Onishchenko, Basketboo,
Hansie Cronje and the original Hand of
God goal.
Sky Sports estimated qualification for
the 2010 World Cup was worth £26.7m to
Irish football, and was worth a similar
amount to the French. FAI chief
executive John Delaney denied the issue
was about money, rather a matter of
"fair play and integrity". The 2010
tournament prize money was later
confirmed by FIFA as being $9m for
participating, a further $9m for exiting
the group stage, with potential prize
totals rising to $30m for the eventual
winners.
Spanish media, where Henry had played
his club football since leaving England
in 2007, took great interest in the
event. The Spanish daily sports
newspaper Diario Marca carried the
headline "Football rails against
'cheating' Henry".
French newspaper L'Équipe greeted the
incident with the headline 'Hand of
God', while Le Parisien had "Henry Saves
France With His Hand.", and Le Figaro
led with "Henry: 'I Am Not the
Referee'." L'Equipe also wrote, "France
have qualified for the 2010 World Cup,
that's for sure, but the result, the
most essential thing in sport after all,
is not enough to erase the uneasy
feeling we had last night". Le Parisien
also wrote "The handball of Henry has
brought a decisive contribution to the
theme 'being French is being ashamed of
one's national team'". Le Monde noted
the lack of any calls for a replay
following the controversial penalty for
handball that went in Ireland's favour,
during their previous Group 8 qualifying
game against Georgia on 11 February
2009. Australia's Daily Telegraph said
Henry would "earn a place in infamy as
one of the biggest cheats in world
sport".
Swedish newspapers advocated that the
Swedish referee used for the match
Martin Hansson be removed from further
major international assignments.
Aftonbladet declared of the officials
"that Team Hansson has also forfeited
its right to continue to take charge of
major international matches. Anything
else would be a further insult to the
Irish nation". Mark Ogden of The
Telegraph criticised Henry for not
informing referee Hansson during the
game, and speculated the incident would
'ruin his career', comparing the cases
of referees Anders Frisk and Tom Henning
Øvrebø.
In Britain, where Henry had spent much
of his club career, The Sun's headline
was "Le Hand of God: Cheat Theirry Does
A Maradona.", while The Daily Mirror was
"French Nickers.", with The Independent
using "Hand Gaul!". The Los Angeles
Times speculated the incident had the
potential to ruin his reputation with a
moment of "eternal notoriety". The
Guardian's chief sportswriter Richard
Williams wrote that the incident was
worse than Maradona's foul, describing
his handball as "a street kid's
instinct", while Henry's was "a
sophisticated man, and a much-decorated
one." Williams also critiqued Henry's
decision not to inform the referee,
citing previous club football examples
of players not taking advantage of a
referee's mistake: Robbie Fowler in 1997
unsuccessfully pleading for the referee
not to give a penalty in his favour,
Paolo Di Canio in 2000 catching the ball
rather than scoring past an
incapacitated goalkeeper, and Costin
Lazăr in 2009 successfully insisting he
would not take the penalty awarded to
him for what he saw as a fair challenge.
Henri Astier wrote for BBC News that the
reaction in France, a "nation not
particularly known for its moral
qualms", had ranged from "embarrassment
to outrage". Dominic Lawson wrote in The
Sunday Times that "[Ireland] has taken
on the role of unjustly oppressed victim
– something the Irish do well, having
had several centuries of practice".
Patrick Barclay, Chief Football
Correspondent for The Times, declared
that the Henry incident "ended the
argument" over the issue of video
refereeing. The Times also speculated
that the incident might lead to a
fast-tracked global deployment of the
Additional Assistant Referee system
already under trial by FIFA, pointing
out that under the trial configuration,
the extra goal-line assistant would have
been standing directly in front of Henry
as he touched the ball with his hand.
FIFA confirmed the AAR plan was to be
discussed at the March 2010
International Football Association Board
meeting. On the issue of football
introducing AAR's, the Wall Street
Journal compared and contrasted the
demands on referees in the World Cup
compared to those in National Football
League, National Hockey League and
boxing, and relayed the negative
experience of U.S. Soccer a decade
previously, who took part in an
international trial using two referees,
one in each half, which 'led to poor
game management'. The Times also
questioned Henry's record on fair play,
recalling his comments and actions
during controversial incidents in a
2001/2 Champions League game against
Panathinaikos, in the 2001 FA Cup Final,
in the 2006 World Cup games against
Spain and Portugal, in the 2006
Champions League Final and 2006–07
Champions League game against CSKA
Moscow. Tim Rich of The Independent
urged for video refereeing, asserting
that the Europa League trial of AAR's
had "not been an unqualified success",
citing a failure of intervention by the
goal line official in a game between
Fulham, in which the players had to
intervene themselves to ensure the main
referee, Belgian Paul Allaerts,
identified the correct man to send off
after a foul on Roma player John Arne
Riise, after mistakenly identifying the
offender as Brede Hangeland. The player
sent off was Stephen Kelly, ironically
an unused Irish substitute in the
controversial France game.
Jonathan Clegg debated in the Wall
Street Journal the effect of the
incident on Henry's lucrative
sponsorship deals, comparing it to
incidents such as ING Group's withdrawal
from the Renault F1 after the Crashgate
controversy, the retention of sponsors
by Harlequin F.C. after their Bloodgate
fake injury scandal, and the enhanced
fortunes of Zinedine Zidane in spite of
his head-butting of Marco Materazzi in
the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final. Gillette,
who Henry represents in advertisements,
were threatened with a boycott and an
email campaign. A brand spokesman said
that it would not affect their
relationship with Henry. Susie Mesure of
The Independent later speculated that
there was now a 'Curse of Gillette'
befalling its three major sporting
representatives, with the Henry
controversy being followed in quick
succession by Tiger Woods' car accident
on 27 November, and a rare defeat of
Roger Federer by Nikolay Davydenko in
the 2009 ATP Tour on 28 November. A
Gillette spokesperson had earlier denied
allegations made by The Sun that a
version of the Gillette Champions poster
showing the three men with a tennis
racket, golf club and football, had been
doctored to remove a ball from Henry's
hand in the French version of their
website.
American radio host Jim Rome commented:
"I'm glad the guy did it; it led to a
goal...How 'bout that guy. The guy was
just trying to make a play. I thought it
was smart; I liked it. It led to a goal;
what's not to like?"
Speaking on Football Focus on 21
November, Philippe Auclair of France
Football magazine said that, unlike Eric
Cantona's "moment of madness", he could
not see Thierry Henry earning a similar
redemption in England for this
"calculated moment of cheating".
On 22 November, the Irish Independent
claimed that the FFF had been willing to
stage a replay and that FIFA would not
have prevented it, but the offer had
been blocked by the French manager
Raymond Domenech.
A Wall Street Journal editorial
supported FIFA's decision not to replay
the match and distinguished the
refereeing error from the one in the
replayed Uzbekistan-Bahrain match.
Henry Winter of The Telegraph wrote that
FIFA had "gained some credibility" by
deciding to investigate Henry after the
EGM, whose presence at the World Cup
would otherwise overshadow the Fair Play
campaign, and that the Henry controversy
made the case for having a panel of
experts examine every major game after
the event for infractions missed by the
referee. Winter contrasted any possible
punishment of Henry with the two-month
ban issued to Diego Maradona for simply
'insulting reporters'. Diana Worman on
Aljazeera.net criticised FIFA's decision
to investigate Henry for an act that
happens all the time, and would have
only warranted a yellow card, writing
"Henry should never have been expected
to make a 'sportsmanlike' decision after
the goal and it's unfair for Fifa to
make an example of him". The Canadian
Press criticised FIFA's "cowardly"
decision to investigate Henry and do
nothing to change the situation for the
2010 World Cup. The Irish Times stated
that the FAI's recommendations to FIFA
in the wake of the controversy had been
"effectively disregarded" at the EGM.
After the announcement that Henry would
face no sanctions, Simon Rice of The
Independent declared Henry had "got away
with it", and compared his lack of
punishment to nine other notable
sporting incidents: Michael Schumacher,
Sir Alex Ferguson, Graeme Smith,
Eduardo, Toni Schumacher, Trevor
Chappell, Andy Haden, Diego Maradona and
Fred Lorz. After the announcement,
Agence France-Presse speculated that any
discipliniary action for Henry would
have presented an "unwelcome precedent"
for FIFA, and any punishment would have
been merely symbolic, given the lack of
prior cases of such retrospective player
sanctions.
FIFA's subsequent decision to select
referee Hansson as one of the 2010 World
Cup officials was criticised by the
Irish media, as well as UEFA president
Michel Platini's comments that it would
have been "great" if France and the
Republic of Ireland had been drawn
together for the 2012 European
Championships.
Other 
'A few hundred' Irish fans marched from
Lansdowne Road Stadium to the French
embassy on Ailesbury Road in Dublin, to
demand a replay. The protesters were
described as 'light hearted' and drawn
from all age groups. An online poll run
by French newspaper Le Monde revealed
88% of the 97,000 respondents said "no"
to the question "Does France deserve to
be in South Africa?". A Facebook
petition demanding a replay was signed
by over 500,000. The petition was to be
handed to FIFA once it passed half a
million signatories. The French
teachers' union SNEP-FSU condemned
Henry's irresponsible example of
"indisputable cheating". Henry's
official Twitter page was reportedly
suspended due to "strange activity".
When the World Cup pool games began
Pizza Hut Delivery Ireland began a
promotion offering a free pizza to every
goal scored against France.
The Irish band, The Mighty Stef, wrote
Protest Song with No Name, which ends
with the lyrics "you might cheat us, you
might beat us, but you'll never lay a
hand on our soul". The Corrigan Brothers
wrote The Hand of Henry, which includes
the line "Sepp Blatter was happy".
French company Le Coq Sportif were
parodied over the incident, with an
agency printing T-shirts with the words
Le Coq un-Sportif. Irish bookmakers
Paddy Power launched a two-week
advertising campaign in the baggage
claim area of Dublin Airport poking fun
at Henry, with posters stating "Paddy
Power welcomes you to Ireland... unless
you're called Thierry". Cleaners in
Ireland also reportedly vandalised the
unrelated Henry brand of vacuum cleaner.
Irish rockstar Bono called on FIFA to do
the noble thing, not act
bureaucratically, and grant Ireland's
request to be added to the World Cup as
a 33rd entrant.
French philosopher Alain Finkielkraut
said on Europe 1 radio that "We are
faced with a real matter of
conscience...We certainly have nothing
to be proud of." British author Roger
Scruton said "one of the major
justifications of sport in all its forms
is that it teaches the virtues of fair
play...Victory achieved by cheating
leaves a foul taste in the mouth...and
makes the whole thing as pointless to
[the defeated team and its supporters]
as it is to someone like me who has
never quite experienced the allure of
the game". The founder of the British
Philosophy of Sport Association called
for "restorative justice", and said that
players had an obligation to honesty
that "over-rides their self-serving
commitments". French economist Jacques
Attali wrote "Nous sommes tous
Irlandais", in reference to the Le Monde
headline "Nous sommes tous Americains"
in the aftermath of the 11 September
attacks.
Bookmakers William Hill stated they
would refund any bets placed backing
Ireland to qualify, to be "as fair as
possible to everyone."
Thierry Henry was "booed relentlessly"
by fans of Athletic Bilbao in his first
competitive match after playing Ireland.
On 4 December 2009, Charlize Theron
co-presented the draw for the 2010 FIFA
World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa,
accompanied by several other celebrities
of South African origin. During
rehearsals she drew an Ireland ball
instead of France as a joke at the
expense of FIFA, referring to the
Thierry Henry handball controversy and
France's controversial qualification.
The stunt alarmed FIFA enough for it to
fear she might do it again in front of a
live global audience.
Irish fans donned sombreros and cheered
as Mexico beat France 2–0 in their
second group stage match on 17 June
2010. France was subsequently eliminated
from the World Cup following a 2–1 loss
to host nation South Africa in their
final group stage match, and finished at
the bottom of Group A.
During the World Cup, English comedian
James Corden refused to acknowledge
France on his "human wallchart" during
James Corden's World Cup Live, replacing
France with Ireland, and when chatting
with the Irish member of the wallchart,
referred to players such as "Terry
Henry" and "Paddy Evra", Irish variants
of the names of France players Theirry
Henry and Patrice Evra.
The Irish playwright and novelist Dermot
Bolger's stage play, The Parting Glass,
is based around this game in Paris, with
most of the second half of the play
occurring during the actual match in the
Stade de France, as an Irish father and
son watch their final Ireland game
together before the son emigrates to
find work in Canada.
= Comparison to other events =
The 2010 Leinster Senior Football
Championship Final between Louth and
Meath held at Croke Park on 11 July 2010
drew comparisons with Thierry Henry's
cheating due to its controversial ending
in which Louth were wrongfully defeated
by a last minute Meath goal which was
thrown into the net and therefore should
not have stood. Louth were in the lead
at the time and would have won their
first Leinster Senior Football
Championship in 53 years if Meath had
not been given the goal. Louth fans
burst onto the pitch as the final
whistle blew, chasing and physically
assaulting the referee around the field,
while a steward was knocked unconscious
with a bottle during ugly scenes played
out on live television. The referee was
struck on at least three different
points as he scrambled away from the
baying mob. Meath chairman Barney Allen
compared calls for the game to be
replayed with Henry's moment of shame,
saying "Ireland didn't get a replay when
France got a lucky goal". As the
controversy continued to erupt, RTÉ
analyst Pat Spillane called it a
"disgrace". Setanta Sports said the
"goal" would "now go down in infamy as
the GAA's Thierry Henry incident".
= TV =
In 2011, "L'Affair Henry the, ahem,
touchiest sporting controversy in living
memory" received its own episode of
Scannal, the TV series dedicated to
scandalous events. The Evening Herald
reviewer called it an "entertaining,
tightly-packaged edition" of the show
but also opined, "Where Scannal
stumbled, however, was in its failure to
go in with both feet on the
cringe-inducing elephant in the room:
John Delaney's embarrassing plea to Fifa
boss, the odious Sepp Blatter, to let
Ireland be "the 33rd team" at the World
Cup".
References 
