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Well they are coming out of the woodwork now.

FIFA Paid Ireland Not to Protest Costly Hand Ball
By ANDREW DASJUNE 4, 2015

The chief executive of Ireland’s soccer association said Thursday that FIFA had quietly paid compensation to his federation after a controversial hand ball by France’s Thierry Henry prevented Ireland from qualifying for the 2010 World Cup.

“We felt we had a legal case against FIFA because of how the World Cup hadn’t worked out because of the Henry hand ball,” the executive, John Delaney, said in an interview with RTE.

Delaney said he had raised the issue of relief for Ireland directly with FIFA’s president, Sepp Blatter, after Mr. Blatter shrugged off Ireland’s complaints immediately after the game.

“We came to an agreement,” Mr. Delaney said. “That was a Thursday, and on Monday the agreement was all signed and all done.”

A FIFA spokesperson confirmed the payment Thursday afternoon, saying that in an agreement completed in January 2010 it had extended a $5 million loan to Ireland’s federation to construct a stadium in Ireland. But FIFA’s statement also noted that UEFA, the governing body for soccer in Europe, “also granted the F.A.I. funds for the same stadium.”

In its statement, FIFA said, “While the referee’s decision is final, and the Football Association of Ireland ultimately accepted it as such, in January 2010 FIFA entered into an agreement with F.A.I. in order to put an end to any claims against FIFA.”

The terms agreed between FIFA and the F.A.I. in January 2010 were that the loan would be reimbursed if Ireland qualified for the 2014 World Cup. Ireland did not qualify, however, and FIFA decided that “in view of the F.A.I.’s financial situation, FIFA decided to write off the loan” on Dec. 31 of last year.

The hand ball occurred in the second leg of a UEFA playoff between Ireland and France on Nov. 18, 2009. France won the first leg in Dublin, 1-0, but after Ireland responded with a Robbie Keane goal at the Stade de France outside Paris, the second match went to extra time.

About 13 minutes into the first extra period, Mr. Henry used his left hand to stop a bouncing ball at the end line just to the left of Ireland’s goal — out of view of the Swedish referee — and then crossed it to William Gallas. As the Irish defenders who had seen the hand ball began to protest, Mr. Gallas headed the ball into the net for the goal that sent France, a 2-1 winner on aggregate, to the World Cup in South Africa.

Furious Irish officials demanded that the game be replayed, but FIFA rejected their appeals because the referee had not seen the hand ball.

“We feel cheated,” the Irish defender Sean St. Ledger said at the time.

Even Mr. Henry admitted what he had done. “I will be honest, it was a hand ball,” he said. “But I’m not the ref. I played it. The ref allowed it.”

Citing a confidentiality agreement, Mr. Delaney on Thursday refused to confirm the amount of the payment, but he chuckled and complimented the interviewer, Ray D’Arcy, after Mr. D’Arcy suggested a figure of “five million.”

But Mr. Delaney left no doubt about the intent of the payment; FIFA had offered the money to persuade Ireland’s federation “not to proceed with the legal case.” He called the secret settlement “a very good and legitimate deal” for Ireland.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/05/sports/soccer/fifa-paid-ireland-not-to-protest-costly-hand-ball.html?ref=sports