Terry was found not guilty of a racially aggravated public order offence by a Magistrates court, but the FA opened its own investigation on Friday night when it brought a charge of using abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour towards QPR defender Ferdinand.
ESPN has been told that an England ban, should there be a guilty verdict, is not on the agenda of the FA Disciplinary panel currently being assembled to hear the charges..
However, if he is found guilty there is already gathering lobby for the FA to take the high moral ground and bar him from continuing to play for his country.
An FA insider told ESPN: "John Terry has requested a personal hearing and the case it likely to be heard in about two weeks, but this is a domestic disciplinary issue and doesn't affect anything to do with England.
"However, it would then be a management decision by the Club England Board and the England manager about how to proceed."
That will not be an easy option for the FA because much might depend on the attitude of newly appointed manager Roy Hodgson.
The previous manager Fabio Capello quit over the FA's insistence that Terry be stripped of the captaincy because of the pending court action, and the Italian coach insisted it was the prerogative of the manager to decide team selection.
Hodgson has insisted it was a purely footballing issue not to take Rio Ferdinand to the European Championships, although many believe it would have been impossible for both the Manchester Untied and Chelsea defenders to have been in such close proximity for so long in that tournament environment.
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