Crystal Palace handed devastating Europa League blow by UEFA | OneFootball

Crystal Palace have been demoted from next season’s Europa League following a ruling from UEFA.

The Eagles had qualified for the competition when they won the 2024/25 FA Cup, beating Manchester City in the final at Wembley in May.

However, they will now compete in the UEFA Conference League, while Nottingham Forest have been promoted to the Europa League. Palace are expected to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Crystal Palace demoted from Europa League by UEFA

The south London outfit’s place in the Europa League was brought into question after Lyon earned their own Europa League spot by finishing sixth in Ligue 1.

John Textor owned shares in both clubs and under UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules, clubs with the same ownership cannot play in the same competition. Textor sold his 43 per cent stake in Palace to American businessman Woody Johnson in a £190 million deal in June.

Lyon will compete in the Europa League due to their higher league position last season. The French side had been relegated to Ligue 2 owing to major financial issues, but were reinstated to the top flight by the French Football Federation this week. That decision allows the club to compete in Europe next term.

Palace’s demotion to the Conference League follows a similar decision by UEFA to expel Drogheda United from the same competition. The League of Ireland club are owned by Trivela Sports Group, an American multi-club football organisation that also own Walsall FC in England and Silkeborg IF in Denmark.

Drogheda, like Palace, qualified for Europe by winning their domestic cup. However, Silkeborg also qualified for the Conference League, leading to the Irish club’s expulsion from the competition as they finished lower in their respective league. They were unsuccessful in their appeal to CAS.

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