FRANKFURT, Germany – FIFA will consider using an electronic microchip inside soccer balls at the 2006 World Cup finals if the technology proves successful.

The microchip, intended to confirm whether or not a ball has crossed the goal line, will be tested at the under-17 world championship in Peru in September and October.

“We will run the test, but I don’t know that it will be successful,” FIFA president Sepp Blatter said yesterday at the Confederations Cup, which starts tomorrow. “But at least we are going to try it.”

Blatter cited two games where rival teams have disputed goals, including a Champion’s League semifinal match this year between Liverpool and Chelsea during which Liverpool was awarded a goal despite protests from Chelsea that defender William Gallas had cleared the ball off the goal line.

Liverpool won the game 1-0 and went on to win the trophy.

“There were 12 cameras at the game, but nobody was able to say for sure if the ball crossed the line or not,” Blatter said. “It’s part of the game. The technology will take away the fun of discussing whether the ball went in or not. They will be missing out on something.”

Another recent error came during a January 4 English Premier League game when Tottenham appeared to have scored against Manchester United in the 89th minute of a 0-0 draw. United goalkeeper Roy Carroll let Pedro Mendes’s long-range shot slip through his hands and replays showed the ball about a yard over the line, but referee Mark Clattenburg declined to call it a goal.