FIFA Bought Off Ireland After Henry Hand Ball Before 2010 World Cup
By Ty Duffy
FAI chief executive John Delaney confirmed, in an RTE radio interview, FIFA paid off the Football Association of Ireland to avoid a lawsuit after a goal resulting from Thierry Henry’s handball in the playoff sent France to the 2010 World Cup.
Delaney, bound by a confidentiality agreement, could not confirm the figure, but did not refute €5 million ($5.6 million).
"“Also the way Blatter behaved, if you remember on stage, having a snigger and having a laugh at us. That day when I went in, and I told him how I felt about him, there were some expletives used. We came to an agreement. “That was a Thursday and on Monday the agreement was all signed and all done. It’s a very good agreement for the FAI and a very legitimate agreement for the FAI. I’m bound by confidentiality from naming the figure.”"
Delaney asserted that the payment was to the association, not to him.
[Getty]