Crystal Palace’s FA Cup Final victory over Manchester City guaranteed them a UEFA Europa League berth, however the Eagles will now prepare for involvement in a different competition instead.
UEFA officially announced on Friday that Crystal Palace will be demoted to the Conference League for the 2025-26 season. The English Premier League club is reportedly set to appeal UEFA’s decision, according to Sky Sports.
The news comes in part of Ligue 1 side Lyon’s upcoming involvement in the Europa League, who were part-owned by former Palace investor John Textor.
Lyon was originally set for relegation to Ligue 2 due to financial reasons, but won its appeal against the French Football Federation earlier this week. Textor sold his 43% stake in Crystal Palace to Woody Johnson earlier this summer and also resigned from his leadership roles at Lyon during their pending investigation.
UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules state that clubs with the same ownership group cannot play in the same competition, leading to Palace’s drop to the Conference League.
The South London club had never previously qualified for a European competition until May’s victory at Wembley Stadium. Eberechi Eze’s goal against Man City helped Oliver Glasner’s men pull a major upset to help Palace claim their first major trophy in club history.
U.S. men’s national team defender Chris Richards played a leading role in the squad, logging 32 appearances in all competitions. It would mark Richards’ first involvement in a European competition since featuring for Hoffenheim in the Europa League back in 2021-22.
Crystal Palace’s competitive schedule gets underway on August 10 against reigning EPL champions Liverpool in the FA Community Shield.
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