Crystal Palace have officially lodged an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over their demotion from the Europa League to the Conference League due to a breach of multi-club ownership rules by the European football governing body, UEFA, Afrosport reports.
The Eagles qualified for a European competition for the first time in their history after defeating Manchester City in last season’s FA Cup final.
Their participation is however under scrutiny as American businessman John Textor, is the majority shareholder of Eagle Football Group that owns Palace and French Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyon.
Lyon will equally participate in the Europa League for the upcoming season, which contravenes UEFA’s rules, prompting Palace to be demoted to the Conference League, the third tier of European club competitions.
The South London club were unable to show evidence of ownership restructuring, maintaining Textor does not have influential control at Selhurst Park.
The American has agreed to sell his stake to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, but it was too late to satisfy UEFA’s requirements. As a result, Nottingham Forest will be promoted from the Conference League to take their spot.
CAS, in a statement, acknowledged receiving the club’s appeal.
“The appeal filed on 21 July 2025 seeks to annul the decision by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body, which found Crystal Palace and OL non-compliant with multi-club ownership regulations and placed Crystal Palace in the UEFA Conference League 2025/2026,” it read.
“Alongside the annulment, Crystal Palace requests readmission to the UEFA Europa League 2025/2026, with Nottingham Forest’s admission rejected.
“In the alternative, Crystal Palace requests readmission to the UEFA Europa League 2025/2026 with OL’s admission rejected.”
A final verdict is expected on or before August 11, with the outcome set to have a significant impact on the enforcement of multi-club ownership rules across European football.
