Henry escapes disciplinary action

FIFA today announced that France striker Thierry Henry will not be punished for his handball in last November's World Cup qualification play-off against the Republic of Ireland.

The world governing body's disciplinary committee concluded there was 'no legal foundation' for them to deal with the case.

The decision means Henry will not face a ban for any matches of this summer's World Cup finals.

FIFA said in a statement: '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.

'There is no other legal text that would allow the committee to impose sanctions for any incidents missed by match officials.'