Germany says FIFA payment to Ireland ‘a joke’

The head of the German Football Federation has condemned FIFA’s payment of $5 million to the Football Association of Ireland for them not to contest their defeat in a crucial World Cup playoff against France as “a joke.”
The game in Paris saw a handball from Thierry Henry lead to the William Gallas goal that gave France a 2-1 aggregate victory in November 2009, sending them through to the 2010 tournament.
Wolfgang Niersbach, a FIFA executive committee member, told German television station ZDF: “It is a joke that they paid this money out to stop the Irish taking them in front of court.”
His comments came after the president of the French Football Federation said he was unaware FIFA had made the payment.
Noel Le Graet, vice-president of French football’s governing body at the time of the handball, said after FAI chief executive John Delaney revealed the payment on Thursday that he had “never heard speak of a deal between FIFA and Ireland.”
“I only remember that Ireland weren’t happy at all, and that there was also a movement in France against Les Bleus’ qualification by do-gooders,” he said.
The handball, which happened in the second leg of the match in Paris, was not seen by Swedish referee Martin Hansson.
Delaney said he had made his feelings about the handball known in a frank exchange with FIFA president Sepp Blatter – who this week announced that he will step down – and the outcome was a financial agreement between the two parties.
He said: “We felt we had a legal case against FIFA because of how the World Cup playoff hadn’t worked out for us with the Henry handball.
“Also the way Blatter behaved… 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.”