Crystal Palace have faced demotion to the Conference League due to breaches of UEFA’s multi-club ownership regulations. The ruling from a UEFA panel has created a significant stir, especially as Nottingham Forest could be poised to take the FA Cup winners’ place in the Europa League. Notably, Palace plans to contest this decision made by UEFA’s first chamber of the club financial control body (CFCB).

UEFA emphasizes that two clubs in the same competition cannot be owned by the same entity beyond specified thresholds. Eagle Football, led by American businessman John Textor, holds the largest stake in Crystal Palace while also owning Lyon, a French club that recently successfully appealed against relegation from Ligue 1. This allowed Lyon to retain its place in the Europa League, prompting UEFA’s financial committee to act.

Palace argues that Textor’s influence at the club is minimal, but UEFA has concluded otherwise. He is currently in negotiations to sell his share to Woody Johnson, the owner of the New York Jets, though this deal is yet to be approved by the Premier League. Notably, Palace missed a March 1 deadline for presenting restructuring evidence related to multi-club ownership. Despite that, there was some indication that qualifying for European competition was beyond reach given their league standing at that time.

Palace had to secure victories against teams like Millwall in the FA Cup to achieve their first major trophy, but as of now, their position in European football is uncertain.