Crystal Palace say the rulings by UEFA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to demote them to the Conference League “show that sporting merit is rendered meaningless”.
Palace were denied entry to the Europa League by UEFA, despite qualifying after winning the FA Cup in May, due to a multi-club breach with French side Lyon. Both teams shared a common owner in Eagle Football Holdings, through the group’s chairman John Textor, but Lyon’s higher domestic league finish meant they entered the competition while Palace were penalised.
Nottingham Forest instead took Palace’s place in the Europa League, while Textor has since sold Eagle’s 43 per cent stake in the club to the New York Jets owner Woody Johnson.
The decision was described by Palace chairman Steve Parish as a “terrible injustice” based on “the smallest of technicalities”.
An appeal was heard by CAS in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Friday, and the court communicated the outcome on Monday, ruling that Textor held “decisive influence” at Palace and therefore UEFA’s decision was upheld, something they vehemently dispute, saying the decision has “shattered the hopes and dreams of Crystal Palace supporters” and that it “should be a turning point for football”.
Palace, though, have hit out at that appeals process, saying it is “almost impossible to receive a fair hearing”. They say they will continue to assess all their legal options and exhaust all routes but “compete in the Conference League with the same determination and will to win that characterises this incredible club”.
“At a time when we should be celebrating our victory in the Community Shield at Wembley, the decision by UEFA and followed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport shows that sporting merit is rendered meaningless,” Palace’s statement read on Tuesday.
“When we won the FA Cup against Manchester City on that momentous day in May, our manager and players earned the right to play Europa League football. We have been denied that opportunity.”
They took aim at what they perceived to be unfair and preferential treatment given to other clubs in a similar situation. UEFA’s rules state that by March 1, teams with a potential multi-club rule breach must have put in place mitigations, such as placing shares in a blind trust, to comply.
“It appears that certain clubs, organisations and individuals have a unique privilege and power,” the statement continued. “This growing and unhealthy influence has shattered the hopes and dreams of Crystal Palace supporters, and does not bode well for aspirational teams all over Europe competing to progress when rules and sanctions are unevenly applied in the most flagrant way.
“Multi-club structures hide behind the charade of a ‘blind trust’ while clubs such as ours, who have no connection to another club whatsoever, are prevented from playing in the same competition.
“To compound the injustice, clubs that appear to have huge informal arrangements with each other are also allowed to participate and even possibly play against each other.”
Palace say that their requests to obtain correspondence between “relevant parties” and to allow witness testimony were refused. This, they argue, “means decisions cannot be properly challenged, leading to pre-determined outcomes”.
“UEFA must fulfil its mandate to pass coherent rules which are properly communicated and applied, with reasonable cure periods to resolve uncertainty and consistent sanctions, treating all clubs equally with a proper appeal process,” Palace’s statement added.
“The European Court of Justice has made it clear that rulings similar to this will be under greater scrutiny from national courts in future. Only then will fairness and due process be granted to every team.”
The Athletic has approached UEFA for comment.
To qualify for the Conference League, Palace must first overcome either Danish side FC Midtjylland or Norwegian side Fredrikstad in a play-off match later this month. It is likely they will face Fredrikstad, who trail 3-1 after the first leg of their Europa League play-off between the two sides.
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