Crystal Palace vs UEFA: CAS Hearing on Dual Ownership Scheduled for August 8
Crystal Palace’s appeal against UEFA’s decision to demote them to the Europa Conference League will be heard by CAS on August 8.
A closed-door hearing regarding the legal dispute between Crystal Palace and UEFA, which also involves Nottingham Forest and Olympique Lyonnais, has been fixed for August 8, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) confirmed on Wednesday.
The matter pertains to UEFA’s decision to shift Palace to the UEFA Europa Conference League, while permitting Lyon to take part in the Europa League, owing to concerns regarding multi-club ownership.
Palace Penalised Over Textor’s Dual Ownership
The controversy arises from American businessman John Textor’s shareholdings in both Crystal Palace and Lyon. UEFA concluded that, as of March 1, Textor exercised “control or influence” over both clubs—a violation of UEFA’s multi-club ownership regulations, which disallow clubs under common influence from competing in the same European tournament.
Although Textor has since consented to sell his Palace shares to Woody Johnson, the owner of the New York Jets, UEFA made its decision based on the ownership structure at the conclusion of the 2023–24 season, during which both clubs secured European berths.
As Lyon finished higher in Ligue 1, they were allocated the Europa League position, whereas Palace were relegated to the Conference League.
Palace Appeals to CAS
Dissatisfied with UEFA’s ruling, Crystal Palace filed an appeal, and CAS has now confirmed that the hearing will take place next month.
Club chairman Steve Parish sounded confident about Palace’s legal prospects during an episode of The Rest is Football podcast.
“We are still contesting it. There’s an appeal process, so we are heading to CAS, and we’re quite hopeful. We believe our legal arguments are strong,” Parish remarked.
“We firmly believe this is not the correct decision. We are absolutely certain that John [Textor] did not wield decisive influence over the club. We have already demonstrated that beyond reasonable doubt—because it is a fact.”
In the event that Palace’s appeal is unsuccessful, Nottingham Forest, who finished seventh in the Premier League, are expected to take their place in the Europa League.
While a verdict is not anticipated on the same day as the hearing, a final decision is likely to be announced by August 11—just ahead of the start of the European qualifying stages.
