Crystal Palace made to wait until August for Europa League verdict
Crystal Palace may have to wait until after the Community Shield to discover their Europa League fate for the upcoming season.
The Eagles have been told they will find out no later than 11 August whether they will play in the Europa League or the Conference League in 2025/26 after submitting an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
FA Cup winners Crystal Palace face Liverpool in the Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on 10 August.
It comes after Uefa demoted the London club from the Europa League to the Conference League for breaching multi-club ownership rules. Palace’s US investor John Textor, who owns 43 per cent of the club, is also the majority owner of Lyon.
Why Crystal Palace were kicked out by Uefa
Under Uefa rules, no two teams who share an owner with “decisive influence” can play in the same competition. As the higher ranking side, Lyon were allowed to compete in the Europa League, while Palace were relegated to the Conference League.
Textor has since agreed to sell his stake in the London club to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson for around £175m, although the deal awaits Premier League approval.
As things stand, Nottingham Forest, who finished seventh in the Premier League last season, are set to replace Crystal Palace in the Europa League. CAS has confirmed that Palace are looking to take either Forest’s or Lyon’s place.
Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish told The Rest Is Football podcast last week: “We are still fighting. There’s an appeal process, so we go to CAS which is the court for arbitration and, you know, we’re very hopeful. We think we’ve got great legal arguments.
“We don’t think this is the right decision by any means. We know unequivocally that John didn’t have decisive influence over the club.
“We know we proved that beyond all reasonable doubt because it’s a fact.”