Chief executive of Football Association of Ireland, John Delaney, has claimed that the body was paid €5million by FIFA, so they will not pursue a legal case, after Thierry Henry’s handball in the 2010 World Cup play-off against France.
Henry handled the ball in the build up to the goal, which saw Les Bleus beat the Republic of Ireland 2-1, to book a place at the finals in South Africa. And Delaney has revealed why they did not take the matter to court.
“We felt we had a legal case against FIFA because of how the World Cup play-off hadn’t worked out for us with the Henry handball,” Delaney told RTE Radio.
“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.”
Delaney did not deny that the amount received was €5 million, but was satisfied with the money they got.
“I’m bound by confidentiality for naming the figure,” Delaney said.
“You’ve put a figure out there and fair play to you. It was a payment to the association to not proceed with a legal case. In there they signed a confidentiality agreement where I can’t talk about the amount involved.
“You used a figure there, well done to you, but it was a very good and legitimate deal for the FAI.”
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