FIFA: WC 2010 Day 3 A hand ball followed by Solvenian dance

Controlling the ball with hand is foul according to football rules. The likelihood of this type of foul increases in proportion with the competitiveness of the game. The outcome, however, should be the same. "...if the player touches the ball with his hand, he must be penalized with a direct free kick and a disciplinary sanction if required." quote from Law of the Game 2010.

World Cup 2010 has produced an anomaly: two hand balls with two different outcomes. In one case the referee ignores the foul and as a result sends the team to the World Cup, France vs Ireland, in the other the referee (correctly) sends the player who performs it out of the game and makes the way for the opponents to win the game, Algeria vs Slovenia. ha!