Last November French soccer team captain Henry Thierry helped scored an infamous goal for France during a 2010 FIFA World Cup Final qualifying round against Ireland. He used his hands, not once but twice, to keep the ball in illegal play before passing the ball to fellow French striker William Gallas to score the all important goal that knocked out Ireland from the finals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup competition. Henry Thierry was called a cheat, and although there were some who excused him, describing his handball offense as unintended fouls, yet others called him an outright cheat. But now, FIFA has come out to officially let Henry Thierry off, saying what he did was not a serious offense.
Why did FIFA let Henry Thierry off scot free? Here is what FIFA said: “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.”
But didn’t the FIFA governing body know that the winning goal was rightly a foul that was missed by the referee and his assistants? Sure, it does. FIFA’s statement explained: “There is no other legal text that would allow the committee to impose sanctions for any incidents missed by match officials.”
Indeed it was Henry Thierry’s defense counsel that successfully argued that FIFA’s disciplinary committee did not have the ability to punish Henry Thierry for such incidents.
How come? Because under current FIFA rules, only the illegal use of a hand to prevent a goal being scored is covered in relation to possible sanctions.
The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) demanded a replay, but FIFA rejected that. FAI then suggested that FIFA could include Ireland as the 33rd team in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Finals, but again this was rejected by FIFA.
Think about it. According to FIFA’s rules, if Henry Thierry had used his hand to stop a goal from being scored, that is a punishable offense. But Henry Thierry did not stop a ball from going into goal. Instead he played a crucial role in his team scoring the winning goal with his hand. So Henry Thierry’s handball was not a serious offense. Is this fair to Ireland?
Previous posts
Henry Thierry – Facing The FIFA Music
Henry Thierry – Does Sepp Blatter Still Support Him?
Henry Thierry – Now Sponsors Feel The Heat
Henry Thierry Booed – “I Felt Alone, Really Alone”
So Is Henry Thierry A Cheat?
“Hand Of God” By Thierry à la Maradona
Recent Comments