France Vs Ireland: To Replay Or Not to Replay?

Unless you've been living under a gargantuan rock, there's been no bigger sports story this week than the controversy from the France/Ireland World Cup qualifier soccer game. The incident was so big that it spilled from sports pages into news sections as it affected French and Irish politicians.

I'm talking, of course, about Thierry Henry's handball-assisted goal. It won the game -- and a World Cup berth -- for France and eliminated Ireland in the process. The handball was so blatantly obvious that Henry himself admitted to the foul and endorsed replaying the match.

It seems everyone -- including sports betting fans -- wants a rematch. Logically, it makes sense. To grant a team a World Cup berth based on cheating feels totally unjust. Replaying the match could right the wrong.

But there's one thing no one seems to be considering right now: the long-term consequences of a replay.

Was Henry's handball the first dirty play or blown call to decide a major sporting event? Of course not. From Maradona's "Hand of God" to Brett Hull's skate-in-the-crease Stanley Cup winner, some huge championships have been tarnished by controversy. In those cases, the losing teams had no choice but accept their fate. No replays.

It makes me wonder -- if Ireland and France replay their match, does it not set a new precedent for sports? Sketchy plays happen more often than we probably realize. What if we start seeing teams demand replays left and right?

"The puck never crossed the line. We saw the highlights on Sportscenter. We demand a replay."

"The ump called it fair but it was foul. Replay, please."

"He never had both feet inbounds. Replay, now!"

Before we crusade for justice and earn a replay, we should stop and consider what it would do to the future of sports. I'd bet at my sportsbook that we'd be opening a nasty can of worms.