UEFA has officially announced that Premier League club Crystal Palace will not be allowed to compete in the Europa League for the 2025/26 season.
"This decision follows an in-depth investigation by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) into breaches of multi-club ownership rules involving Crystal Palace and French Ligue 1 club Olympique Lyonnais," UEFA said in a statement on its official website on Friday.
Crystal Palace, who secured their Europa League spot after winning last season's FA Cup with a shock 1-0 victory over Manchester City, are facing the risk of losing their qualification for a breach of UEFA rules.These rules prohibit individuals or entities from having significant influence over more than one club competing in the same European competition.
John Textor, through his company Eagle Football Holdings, owns a 43 percent stake in Crystal Palace and a 77 percent stake in Lyon, who also qualified for the Europa League after finishing sixth in Ligue 1.Although Textor has agreed to sell his stake in Crystal Palace to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson and step down from his leadership position at Lyon, UEFA stated that these steps are not enough to meet the multi-club ownership rule deadline of March 1, 2025.
