Crystal Palace don’t hold back in an extraordinary response to UEFA’s decision with the club losing their appeal.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismissed Crystal Palace’s appeal against UEFA, Nottingham Forest, and Olympique Lyonnais regarding UEFA’s decision to exclude CPFC from the 2025/2026 UEFA Europa League due to a breach of multi-club ownership rules.
Palace will instead compete in the UEFA Conference League. The CAS Panel, after a hearing on 8th August 2025, upheld UEFA’s ruling, found that John Textor, with shares in both CPFC and OL, exerted decisive influence over both clubs, violating UEFA regulations.
The Premier League club claim of unfair treatment was rejected, as the rules were deemed clear and inflexible. The expedited decision was made two and a half weeks after the appeal was filed on 21 July 2025.
Palace’s statement expressed disappointment, arguing that the ruling undermines sporting merit, criticises inconsistent rule application, and highlights procedural unfairness. They plan to compete in the Conference League while considering further legal action.
At a time when we should be celebrating our victory in the Community Shield at Wembley, the decision by UEFA and followed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport shows that sporting merit is rendered meaningless.
Full statement 👇#CPFC
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) August 12, 2025
CAS press release on Palace appeal pic.twitter.com/dwd8KF0Zlq
— Kieran Maguire (@KieranMaguire) August 11, 2025
CLUB STATEMENT:
At a time when we should be celebrating our victory in the Community Shield at Wembley, the decision by UEFA and followed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport shows that sporting merit is rendered meaningless.
When we won the FA Cup against Manchester City on that momentous day in May, our manager and players earned the right to play Europa League football.
We have been denied that opportunity.
It appears that certain clubs, organisations and individuals have a unique privilege and power.
This growing and unhealthy influence has shattered the hopes and dreams of Crystal Palace supporters, and does not bode well for aspirational teams all over Europe competing to progress when rules and sanctions are unevenly applied in the most flagrant way.
Multi-club structures hide behind the charade of a “blind trust” while clubs such as ours, who have no connection to another club whatsoever, are prevented from playing in the same competition.
To compound the injustice, clubs that appear to have huge informal arrangements with each other are also allowed to participate and even possibly play against each other.
While we respect the CAS tribunal members, the process is designed to severely restrict and, in our case, make it almost impossible to receive a fair hearing.
The denial of all disclosure requests to obtain correspondence between the relevant parties, the refusal to allow witness testimony from those involved, and the general lack of formality and respect for law mean decisions cannot be properly challenged, leading to pre-determined outcomes.
UEFA’s decision has wider implications for the governance of the sport. A combination of poorly conceived regulations and their unequal application means our brilliant fans will be deprived of the chance to watch this team compete in the Europa League for the first time in our history.
This should be a turning point for football.
UEFA must fulfil its mandate to pass coherent rules which are properly communicated and applied, with reasonable cure periods to resolve uncertainty and consistent sanctions, treating all clubs equally with a proper appeal process.
The European Court of Justice has made it clear that rulings similar to this will be under greater scrutiny from national courts in future. Only then will fairness and due process be granted to every team.
Although we continue to take legal advice on the next steps, we will compete in the Conference League with the same determination and will to win that characterises this incredible club.
CAS STATEMENT:
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed an appeal by Crystal Palace FC (CPFC) against UEFA, Nottingham Forest FC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) concerning a decision by UEFA to remove CPFC from the UEFA Europa League 2025/2026 due to a breach of UEFA multi club ownership regulations. As a result, CPFC will be admitted to compete in the UEFA Conference League 2025/2026.
The appeal sought to annul the decision by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body on 11 July 2025 which found CPFC and OL non-compliant with multi club ownership regulations. Alongside the annulment of the decision, CPFC requested readmission to the UEFA Europa League with Nottingham Forest or OL’s admission rejected.
An in-person hearing took place at CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland on 8 August 2025. The CAS Panel was composed of Prof. Luigi Fumagalli as President (Italy), Mr Manfred P. Nan (the Netherlands) and Mr Olivier Canard (Switzerland).
After considering the evidence, the Panel found that John Textor, founder of Eagle Football Holdings, had shares in CPFC and OL and was a Board member with decisive influence over both clubs at the time of UEFA’s assessment date. The Panel also dismissed the argument by CPFC that they received unfair treatment in comparison to Nottingham Forest and OL. The Panel considered that the UEFA Regulations are clear and do not provide flexibility to clubs that are non-compliant on the assessment date, as CPFC claimed.
This was an expedited procedure, with an operative decision rendered two and a half weeks after the appeal, filed on 21 July 2025. Unless Parties request confidentiality, a full Award (with grounds) will be made available on the CAS website in due course.
Crystal Palace don’t hold back in an extraordinary response to UEFA’s decision after losing their appeal, here’s how fans reacted…
@TomClingo: Proper statement. No bullshit. UEFA is corrupt. FIFA is corrupt. CAS is corrupt. The FA’s silence is deafening. If you’re a fan of any club and don’t agree with this statement, then you aren’t really a football fan. Let’s give UEFA hell this season🔴🔵 #CPFC #GameGone
@ErlingProp: John Textor is the one you should be blaming, not UEFA, not Forest, not other clubs who have completed the necessary admin for multi-club ownership rules
@JGNFFC_: still not your fault 😭😭😭😭
@jaacknffc: I am once again shocked to see that Steve Parish is blaming everybody but himself
@simmoshiner1997: Accept the decision. Back the manager. Win the Conference League. #CPFC
@_GeorgeCPFC_: What a fucking statement from the club, well done ❤️💙
@Cee_GK5: Absolutely fine taking money from a bloke with no repercussions though. Absolutely fine ignoring the rules and regulations. Absolutely fine not getting a red card in the final. Absolutely fine blaming others but not keeping your own house in order.
@JaackB95: Not surprised they’re all lapping this up from Parish when the majority of their fanbase are brain dead. No responsibility taken, everyone else to blame. No shock that Guehi and Eze want out, Glasner won’t be long after when Parish can’t afford to buy anyone
@philviles: I like #CPFC as a club, but this statement is a little embarrassing. It’s failed to recognise their own failings; it hasn’t addressed the fact that rules were broken, deadlines were not met. It points blame at others and accepts no responsibility. Shame really.
@AurierForPM: Zero accountability here. Refusal to take responsibility for a mistake which has cost them £20m. Just like their appeal, they’re lashing out aimlessly like petty children.
@polyester_fever: Absolutely spot on. Football is in a state because the governing bodies keep rushing through poorly thought out rules. That’s from the FA, UEFA to FIFA. The Superleague was banned, so to keep those clubs happy they got rid of fair competition.
@BFCHarryy: Honestly becoming one of the most unbearable clubs in football, You broke the rules and you’ve been punished👍
https://t.co/a7P58XW1UE pic.twitter.com/ROoFvBAaGW
— FPL_MATETA (@FPL_MATETA) August 12, 2025
