UEFA Confirms Crystal Palace’s European Status Shift to Conference League

July 11 – The only route left open for Crystal Palace to retain their UEFA Europa League spot next season is through an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), following UEFA’s ruling today that multi-club ownership rules had been breached as of March 1, the deadline given to clubs to resolve their ownership conflicts.

UEFA confirmed that Olympique Lyonnais will participate in the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League, while Crystal Palace will be relegated to the Conference League. Nottingham Forest will take Crystal Palace’s place in the Europa League.

This decision comes despite the ownership conflict being resolved with the recent sale of John Textor’s Eagle Holdings’ stake in Crystal Palace to U.S. investor Woody Johnson last month. Initially, it seemed the investigation might not be necessary, and Crystal Palace would be eligible for the Europa League following Lyon’s relegation for violating French financial regulations. However, the French financial control authority (DNCG) ultimately decided against relegating Olympique Lyonnais to Ligue 2.

It should be made clear that before this incident occurred, John Textor had sold his ownership interest in Crystal Palace. This change was made after UEFA’s crucial March deadline had passed, which could have an impact on the club’s ability to comply with financial rules and compete in future tournaments. Understanding the timeline of these events offers a clearer picture of the context surrounding Textor’s decisions and their potential effects on the club.

In a statement, UEFA declared: “Olympique Lyonnais will not be excluded from the 2025/26 UEFA club competitions. Consequently, the CFCB First Chamber evaluated the documentation provided by Olympique Lyonnais and Crystal Palace and concluded that the clubs breached the multi-club ownership criteria outlined in Art 5.01 of the UEFA Club Competition Regulations as of March 1, 2025.

For this reason, in accordance with Articles 5.02, 5.03, and 5.04 of the UEFA Club Competitions Regulations, the CFCB First Chamber decided:
– To accept Olympique Lyonnais’ admission to the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League; and
– To reject Crystal Palace’s admission to the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League and accept Crystal Palace’s admission to the 2025/26 UEFA Conference League.”