The effects of Ireland's failure to qualify for the World Cup finals will no doubt be felt for some time. Indeed the ramifications have already been experienced in the most unlikely and unexpected way.
Such is the shock of the nil-all draw with Switzerland that ended the Republic's hopes that it is having a profound effect on powers of speech, or at least on the speech of one TD in particular.
Michael D Higgins, Labour's foreign affairs spokesman, (perhaps an appropriate portfolio, given its impact on his words) caused great hilarity in the Dáil when he almost gave the Minister for Foreign Affairs a new portfolio.
The Labour deputy for Galway West had been asking the Tánaiste when would Ireland ratify the UN Convention Against Corruption, and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families.
Mary Harney reminded the deputy that he had already raised the issue with the Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern, and that the Minister would have to communicate with the deputy.
Mr Higgins responded: "The Minister for Fornica . . . Foreign Affairs . . . " The House erupted and Mr Higgins turned to his Labour colleagues and asked: "what did I say?"
Minister for Sport John O'Donoghue pondered aloud: "I wonder who would get that job?"
Through the lengthy cackling on all sides of the House, the Labour deputy ploughed on bravely, asking the Tánaiste to ask the Minister for Justice if he planned to have legislation to implement these conventions.
After the Tánaiste promised to get the Minister for Justice to contact him, Mr Higgins rose to his feet again to clarify his earlier slip.
"I apologise for my misuse of language," he said as chuckles were still reverberating around the House.
It was "a consequence of Ireland's loss in yesterday's soccer match" - a comment which caused further laughter and some admiration for a commendable explanation.
Later, parliamentary language was again stretched somewhat during Arts, Sport and Tourism questions.
On the issue of the artists' tax exemption scheme, Green Party TD Paul Gogarty had asked for a full cost-and-benefit analysis, to show the intrinsic essential benefit of the scheme even for high earners.
That way, when the "silly season" came around, there wouldn't be any media reports about high rollers, that "are scaring the bejaysus" out of the poorer section of the artistic community.
There were other tax exemption schemes that could be reviewed instead, he suggested, such as holiday homes or the stallion tax exemption scheme.
"No one can say that the work of a stallion was of any intrinsic, artistic merit," he quipped. The Minister reiterated his support for the artists' scheme.
As to the artistic merit of a stallion, "it all depends whether you are on the winner or the loser", Mr O'Donoghue advised Mr Gogarty.