In a major development ahead of the 2025/26 European football season, UEFA has officially demoted Crystal Palace from the Europa League to the UEFA Europa Conference League due to a breach of its multi-club ownership regulations.
The governing body announced that both Crystal Palace and Olympique Lyonnais—who had qualified for the same European competition—cannot participate simultaneously in the Europa League because of shared ownership links through businessman John Textor.
Why Was Crystal Palace Demoted?
Crystal Palace earned a spot in the Europa League after defeating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, while Lyon qualified by finishing sixth in Ligue 1. However, a problem arose because John Textor holds significant stakes in both clubs.
Under UEFA’s Article 5 on multi-club ownership, two clubs with overlapping ownership or decisive influence cannot play in the same UEFA competition. Despite Textor’s claims that he does not exert “decisive influence” over both clubs, UEFA’s investigation found the ownership structure to be non-compliant.
Although Textor made efforts to address the issue—reportedly selling 43% of his shares in Crystal Palace and resigning from leadership roles at Lyon—UEFA concluded that the changes did not fully resolve the conflict before the March 1 deadline for compliance.
UEFA’s Multi-Ownership Rule Explained
According to UEFA regulations:
“Clubs are not allowed to compete in the same UEFA competition if they share an owner that has a decisive influence over both teams.”
This is designed to preserve the integrity and independence of European competitions by preventing any potential conflicts of interest that might arise from joint ownership.
What Happens Next?
As a result of the ruling:
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Crystal Palace will now participate in the 2025/26 UEFA Europa Conference League.
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The club that finished next-best in the Premier League and meets all criteria is expected to take Palace’s Europa League spot.
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Lyon will retain their place in the Europa League.
UEFA also cited Article 4.05 of its competition regulations, stating:
“A club that is not admitted to the competition is replaced by the next-best-placed club in the top domestic championship of the same association… safeguarding the sporting integrity of the competition.”
This reshuffling underscores UEFA’s firm stance on multi-club ownership and its determination to enforce rules that ensure fairness and prevent undue influence across its competitions.
The ruling is a blow to Palace’s European ambitions but serves as a cautionary tale for clubs involved in multi-club structures heading into European tournaments.