UPDATED: FIFA to Discuss Ireland Request to be 33rd Team at WC; Extra Match Officials for 2010?

(WFI) FIFA president Sepp Blatter confirms that a request from Irish football authorities to allow Ireland to play in the World Cup is on the agenda for this week's emergency meeting of the executive committee.

Speaking at Soccerex in Johannesburg today, Blatter said he met with an Irish delegation who visited FIFA headquarters in Zurich last week. He has granted their request to discuss the matter at Wednesday's extraordinary executive committee convening in Cape Town.

Blatter told the Soccerex conference: “The Football Association of Ireland have not asked for any sanctions of any referee or play, but have asked, very humbly, 'Can’t we be the team 33 in the World Cup'."

The move would be extraordinary and unprecedented and Blatter pulled a face to indicate the awkwardness of the request. Despite laughter from the audience, Blatter said the request was "serious" and it would definitely be on the agenda at the Dec. 2 meeting.

A more likely outcome from that meeting is a decision on whether to have extra referees at the 2010 World Cup, which Blatter also confirmed was on the agenda. UEFA is piloting the concept of five match officials - one behind each goal - in its Europa League competition.

Blatter indicated that this and ensuring fair play in next summer’s World Cup was FIFA’s priority on Wednesday.

“It is possible we will make a decision to have additional officials for the World Cup. This is open [for debate] and we have to analyse the situation and to see if it is feasible and commendable or realistic or not.”

“We have only one man on the field of play to make decisions. He has two assistants for the time being, although may have more in the future. And then he has to make the decision. And he has to make an immediate decision. He cannot always identify or see – he has only two eyes.”

Referring to video technology, Blatter insisted he wanted to “keep the human face of football and not go into technology".

At the same time, Blatter signaled he was strongly in favor of goalline technology. He confirmed that the International Football Association Board, football’s law-making body, would approve the development when it was happy that the technology would “cure” the problem. He said that the issue was up for discussion at its next meeting in March.

Controversial World Cup play-offs
Blatter seemed genuinely displeased at the drama and uproar that surrounded the World Cup play-off matches earlier this month, saying that the games between Ireland v France and Egypt vAlgeiria were “not in the spirit” of the World Cup.

He described these encounters as “combat”, but also contrasted the reactions of the defeated teams unfavourably with those of England at the 1986 World Cup, when they were eliminated at the quarter-final stage by Diego Maradona’s “hand of God".

He said that he had a frank, “man to man” telephone conversation with Thierry Henry following the incident which caused such uproar in Ireland two weeks ago. The French striker clearly handled the ball twice in the build-up to the decisive goal scored by William Gallas. Henry admitted after the match that he had controlled the ball with his hand.

Henry asked Blatter if he would be punished, to which the FIFA president replied: “Punished for what?” Blatter revealed that Henry was “relieved to speak with the FIFA president” and said that his family living in London had received threats after the match.

Irish football authorities had initially lobbied FIFA for a replay of Ireland's controversial World Cup play-off defeat to France.

Yesterday, Blatter came to the defence of Henry in comments to France's L'Equipe newspaper.

"(Henry) was honest by admitting that he did use his hand, but it wasn't his responsibility to tell the referee," Blatter was quoted as saying. "The referee should have taken the time to reflect rather than immediately awarding the goal."

Written by James Corbett and Mark Bisson (mark@worldfootballinsider.com)

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