Republic of Ireland vs France was a two-legged football play-off held on 14 and 18 November 2009 between the national teams of the Republic of Ireland and France as part of the UEFA second round of qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The first match was held on 14 November in Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland, and ended in a 1–0 victory for France with Nicolas Anelka scoring. The second leg, played on 18 November in the Stade de France outside Paris, France, finished 1–0 to the Republic of Ireland (with Robbie Keane scoring). The tie went to extra time and a controversial William Gallas goal enabled by captain Thierry Henry handling the ball twice made the score 2–1 on aggregate and France progressed to the World Cup at Ireland's expense. After the second leg, Henry admitted to Irish defender Richard Dunne that he had illegally handled the ball in the build-up to Gallas' match-winning goal, which had been scored in extra time with 17 minutes remaining.

The incident prompted the Football Association of Ireland and Government of Ireland to request FIFA to either replay the game or allow Ireland to participate in the World Cup as an additional 33rd team. Henry faced accusations of unsportsmanlike conduct from fans and media outlets following the incident, with the incident being compared to Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" goal, and Time magazine adding Henry's goal (sometimes called "Le Hand of God" or "Le Hand of Frog", among other nicknames) to a top ten list of sporting cheats. Henry publicly reflected on retiring from international football due to the backlash, and referee Martin Hansson indicated he contemplated stepping down from officiating.

The result contributed to discussions about fair play in football and the potential use of video refereeing and Additional Assistant Referees. At an emergency meeting of the FIFA Executive Committee called in part as a result of the handball controversy, FIFA announced it was setting up an inquiry into the options for technology or extra officials in football, but ruled out any changes being introduced in time for the 2010 World Cup. The FIFA Disciplinary Committee reviewed Henry's actions and concluded that the FIFA Disciplinary Code did not permit sanctions in this specific case.

Route to the matches

The qualification process for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa began in 2007, and as Europe-affiliated teams (both being members of UEFA) France and the Republic of Ireland became two of 53 teams competing for 13 places in the finals.

Under the rules for the 2010 tournament, UEFA qualification was a two-stage process, as had previously been the case for qualification in 2006. Teams were able to qualify automatically by winning one of nine qualifying groups (the first round), and a second chance to qualify was given to eight of the nine second-place finishers via a knock-out phase (the second round) of four games between those eight second-placed teams, contested over two legs, home and away, with the winners of each pairing being awarded one of the four remaining UEFA qualifying places. Both France and the Republic of Ireland failed to qualify as winners of their first-round groups (France in Group 7, Ireland in Group 8), but both teams finished in second place with enough points to allow them to advance to the second round.

FIFA announced on 29 September 2009 that it would modify the draw system used to select second-round pairings by introducing a seeding system. In the draw, held in Zürich on 19 October, the eight teams were divided into two pots of four; France were seeded along with Greece, Portugal and Russia, while Ireland was unseeded, alongside Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Ukraine. Ireland was drawn to play France, with the first of their two games to be played in Ireland on 14 November 2009. The way the seeding process was handled led media reports and critics alleged at the time that UEFA altered the rules to benefit higher-profile teams such as France and Portugal.

The 18 November date of the second leg of the France vs Republic of Ireland play-off in Saint-Denis coincided with the date of a number of other World Cup qualification matches around the world, marking the completion of the entire qualification process for 2010. With their win, France ultimately joined Algeria, Greece, Slovenia, Portugal and Uruguay as the last of the 32 competitors in South Africa.

Under the agreed tie-break criteria, the team scoring more goals on aggregate wins the play-off. If scores are level on aggregate, the team with the higher number of away goals advances. If teams are level on away goals, 30 minutes of extra time is played. If the score is level after extra time, the match goes to penalties.

Pre-match

Venue selection The Dublin leg of the tie was held at Croke Park instead of the Republic of Ireland's traditional home venue of Lansdowne Road, owing to ongoing redevelopment of that venue as the Aviva Stadium. The French leg was held at Stade de France, the French team's national stadium near Paris.

Analysis Before 1990, the Republic of Ireland had never qualified for the FIFA World Cup finals, while France's best record was two third-place finishes, in 1958 and 1986. Between 1990 and 2006 (the year in which the most recent FIFA World Cup had been held), the Republic of Ireland and France had each qualified for three finals tournaments. The two teams' records for the tournament were as follows:

FinalsHost country/countriesFranceRepublic of IrelandQualificationFinalsQualificationFinals1990 ItalyDid not qualify – third place in Group 5n/aAs one of two best second-place finishers (in Group 6)Lost to Italy in the quarter-finals 1994 United StatesDid not qualify – third place in Group 6n/aAutomatic as Group 3 runners upLost to the Netherlands in the Round of 161998 FranceAutomatic as hostsChampions (defeated Brazil 3–0)Did not qualify – finished second in Group 8; lost second round play-off to Belgium 2–3 on aggregaten/a2002 South Korea JapanAutomatic as defending championsEliminated in the group stageAdvanced as Group 2 runners up; qualified by defeating Iran 2–1 on aggregate in the UEFA/AFC intercontinental play-offLost to Spain in the Round of 16 2006 GermanyAs winners of UEFA first round Group 4Lost in the final 3–5 on penalties to Italy (score was 1–1 a.e.t.) Did not qualify – fourth place in Group 4n/a

Matches

Dublin leg

Summary The Republic of Ireland team chose a balanced 4-4-2 formation, while the French team opted for their customary 4-2-3-1 formation, favouring offensive play over defence.

Details

GK 1 Shay GivenRB 4 John O'SheaCB 5 Richard DunneCB 2 Sean St LedgerLB 3 Kevin KilbaneRM 7 Liam Lawrence CM 6 Glenn WhelanCM 8 Keith AndrewsLM 11Damien Duff SS 9Kevin Doyle CF 10Robbie Keane (c)Substitutes:GK 16 Joe MurphyDF 13Paul McShaneDF 14Stephen KellyMF 12Aiden McGeady MF 15Darron GibsonMF 17Stephen Hunt FW 18Leon Best Manager: Giovanni Trapattoni GK 1 Hugo LlorisRB 2 Bacary SagnaCB 5 William GallasCB 3 Eric AbidalLB 13Patrice EvraCM 18Alou DiarraCM 6 Lassana DiarraRW 9 Nicolas AnelkaAM 8 Yoann GourcuffLW 12Thierry Henry (c)CF 11André-Pierre Gignac Substitutions:GK 16Steve MandandaDF 4 Julien EscudéDF 17Sébastien SquillaciMF 14Moussa SissokoFW 7 Sidney GovouFW 10Karim BenzemaFW 15Florent Malouda Manager: Raymond Domenech Assistant referees: Fourth official: +Dublin legStatistic Republic of Ireland FranceGoals scored 0 1Total shots 9 11Shots on target 3 4Saves 2 4Corner kicks 3 6Fouls committed 10 6Offsides 6 3Yellow cards 0 0Red cards 0 0

Saint-Denis leg

Summary

A controversial instance of misconduct occurred during extra time in the second leg of the two-legged tie, when the overall score was standing at 1–1 on aggregate. French player Florent Malouda took a free kick just outside the centre circle in the Irish half of the field. He lofted it toward French captain Thierry Henry, who was making a run in the penalty area to Irish goalkeeper Shay Given's right-hand side. The ball bounced once to Henry, now inside the goal area to the left of the goal. As it bounced upwards, Henry handled the ball twice with his left hand, stopping it going out of play and bringing the ball under control, before tapping the ball with the outside of his right foot past Given standing at the near goal post. The ball travelled the short distance to William Gallas arriving in the middle of the goal, who headed the ball into the Irish net to confirm France's place at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The referee immediately signalled the goal as being valid. Irish players inside the penalty box appealed the decision by raising their arms, and as Henry wheeled away in celebration around the back of the Irish goal, Given ran to the referee gesticulating that a handball offence had occurred, while the Irish manager did the same to the fourth official.

The handball offence was not seen by the referee or his two assistants, according to the BBC. The match officials also missed an offside during the same phase of play.

Details

GK 1 Hugo LlorisRB 2 Bacary SagnaCB 4 Julien Escudé CB 5 William GallasLB 13Patrice EvraCM 18Alou DiarraCM 6 Lassana DiarraRW 9 Nicolas AnelkaAM 8 Yoann Gourcuff LW 12Thierry Henry (c)CF 11André-Pierre Gignac Substitutions:GK 16Steve MandandaDF 17Sébastien Squillaci MF 14Moussa SissokoFW 3 Loïc RémyFW 7 Sidney Govou FW 10Karim BenzemaFW 15Florent Malouda Manager:Raymond Domenech GK 1 Shay GivenRB 4 John O'Shea CB 5 Richard DunneCB 2 Sean St LedgerLB 3 Kevin Kilbane RM 7 Liam Lawrence CM 6 Glenn Whelan CM 8 Keith AndrewsLM 11Damien Duff SS 9 Kevin DoyleCF 10Robbie Keane (c)Substitutes:GK 16Joe MurphyDF 13Paul McShane DF 14Stephen KellyMF 12Aiden McGeady MF 15Darron Gibson MF 17Stephen HuntFW 18Leon BestManager: Giovanni Trapattoni Assistant referees: Fourth official: +Saint-Denis legStatistic France Republic of IrelandGoals scored 1 1Total shots 11 6Shots on target 3 2Saves 11 3Corner kicks 7 4Fouls committed 17 23Offsides 3 2Yellow cards 3 3Red cards 0 0

Post-match

View of match participants

Thierry Henry Henry told a reporter after the incident, "Yes, there was hand, but I'm not the referee. Toto was going for the front, I was behind two Irishmen, the ball ricocheted and hit my hand. Of course, I continued to play ... The referee did not whistle 'hand' but I can't say there wasn't hand." Henry later defended himself against criticism, stating, "Obviously I would have preferred that things panned out differently but I am not the official. I do not think we have stolen qualification."

After FIFA denied the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) request for a replay, Henry released a statement. The fairest solution would be to replay the game but it is not in my control ... Naturally I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish who definitely deserve to be in South Africa ... I have said at the time and I will say again that 'yes' I handled the ball. I am not a cheat and never have been. It was an instinctive reaction to a ball that was coming extremely fast in a crowded penalty area. ... As a footballer you do not have the luxury of the television to slow the pace of the ball down 100 times to be able to make a conscious decision ... People are viewing a slow motion version of what happened and not what I or any other footballer faces in the game. If people look at it in full speed you will see that it was an instinctive reaction.