The Battle of Crystal Palace to regain Europa League locations took a dramatic turn in both the courtroom and the streets of Switzerland. John Text’s Eagle Football Hold holds shares in both the Palace and Lyon after UEFA decides the Palace must stop by the Conference League due to a conflict of ownership of the Multiclub.
At the heart of the palace’s frustration is timing. The text agreed to sell its palace stake to US billionaire Woody Johnson for £160 million, but the deal was too late to meet the UEFA March 1 ownership deadline. At the same time, Lyon successfully overturned the domestic relegation ruling and returned it to the European contest. As a result, UEFA gave Lyon a spot in the Europa League despite the palace’s FA Cup victory.
However, the Palace believes that this process was flawed and inconsistently applied. A key part of their case emphasizes that nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis also controls Olympiacos, but did not formally retreat from Forest until after the UEFA cutoff. Still, Forest was awarded with further renovations of Palace’s Europa League location.
While the club was fighting a legal battle, a Holmesdale fanatic Ultra band performed stunts at UEFA headquarters in Nayon, Switzerland. They wore banners accusing UEFA of “moral bankruptcy” and carried a letter to UEFA President Alexander Ceferin, which dramatically equiped the chase cassing uefa decision as one of greed and contradictions. Security quickly stepped in, but the image was already viral. It is a vivid symbol of fans’ anger over perceived institutional injustice.
If successful, the appeal would result in either Lyon or Nottingham Forest being forced out of the competition. The Palace argues that the reorganization of their owners should not be delayed, especially given the circumstances surrounding the forest and Lyon. The club claims they are in line with the spirit, if not strict technology of UEFA rules.
Ultimately, the appeal of the palace is not only a test of UEFA’s multi-club ownership enforcement, but also a statement on how the fairness, transparency, and football regulatory framework deals with the complex web of ownership. The ruling is scheduled for August 11th and could ripple far beyond southern London, affecting the decision of future European eligibility across the continent.
One thing is certain, Crystal Palace has not made its way forward quietly after winning its first major trophy. Their fight may be bureaucratic in this setting, but in tone and passion, it is nothing more than a protest against what they see as an elite structure of football that turns a blind eye to nuance and fairness. It is still unknown whether the court agrees.
Embedded from Getty Images