Crystal Palace Relegated in UEFA Ownership Case

Crystal Palace has been dropped to the third-tier Conference League in a recent UEFA ruling on multi-club ownership cases, while Olympique Lyonnais retains its position in the Europa League. Despite Palace's qualification for the Europa League by winning the FA Cup last season, the breach of UEFA's multi-club ownership criteria led to their demotion.

Olympique Lyonnais was originally relegated to France's Ligue 2 due to financial concerns, but the decision was overturned. This allowed the UEFA Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) to rule on both Olympique Lyonnais and Crystal Palace's ownership cases. Eagle Football Group, a major stakeholder in both clubs under John Textor's leadership, was found in breach of multi-club ownership rules as of March 1, 2025.

The development means that Palace, which had a stake transfer agreement in place with Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson, missed the deadline for compliance. John Textor expressed his surprise at UEFA's decision, highlighting that a sale process was already underway. If UEFA's decision remains, Nottingham Forest could potentially take Palace's place in the Europa League.