Crystal Palace forced to wait on crunch Europa League decision from Uefa chiefs with new date revealed
CRYSTAL Palace will have to wait until at least Monday to discover if they have been cleared to play their first European campaign.
Palace's 'Multi Club Ownership' issues were among a number of similar matters being considered by Uefa finance chiefs.
2
2
But the meeting at Uefa headquarters in Nyon has so many cases to consider that final verdicts will not be announced until after the weekend.
Palace legal beaks and executives pleaded their case to Uefa's Club Financial Control Body, with their arguments strengthened by Lyon's relegation from France's top flight over the club's soaring debts.
The Selhurst club have been made to wait for the green light since their FA Cup Final win over Manchester City because Lyon are owned by the Eagle Football group owned by US businessman John Textor, who had a 44.9 per cent stake in Palace despite being kept at arms length by Steve Parish and Americans Josh Harris and Dave Blitzer.
Despite his limited role at Selhurst Park, Uefa were concerned that Textor's ownership stake breached regulations stating that clubs which are part of a shared ownership group cannot compete in the same competition.
Those rules saw Manchester United owners Ineos park their shares in French side Nice in a blind trust to allow both to play in the Europa League last season, with Chelsea owners BlueCo withdrawing from their hands-on role at Strasbourg.
And Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis stepped back from any official role at the City Ground in April, to meet the Uefa requirements, when he hoped the East Midlanders would qualify for the Champions League alongside Greek side Olympiacos.
Palace, though, did not make any changes to the ownership structure ahead of the Uefa deadline for next season - a situation complicated by Blitzer's ownership of Danish side Brondby, who qualified for the Conference League.
And as Lyon finished sixth in Ligue 1, compared to Palace's 12th-placed ranking in the Prem, they take priority over the South East London side.
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS
Despite that, the FA have backed the Eagles and Palace's cause was also aided by Textor's announcement that he is selling his Palace shares to New York Jets owner and former US ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson in a £190m deal.
That sale still has to be cleared by the Premier League, although it is not expected to be held up.
Crystal Palace could be KICKED OUT of Europa League before a ball is even kicked
Textor now faces being ejected from the Lyon hotseat as well, with investment fund Ares, who loaned the US businessman £330m to fund his takeover in 2023, seeking to install new leadership.
Lyon's relegation means they would not be nominated to take up their Europa League place, although the club are appealing against the decision of French football's financial regulator.
But if Lyon were to win their appeal after being excluded from the official entry list, Nyon chiefs anticipate they are likely to apply to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to be reinstated.
That would probably be at the expense of Strasbourg, who finished seventh in Ligue 1 and are expected to be nominated in Lyon's place.
However, insiders anticipate that Palace would not be retrospectively prohibited from competing if Uefa has cleared their entry.
Meanwhile, Irish side Drogheda has been expelled from the Uefa Conference League.
This is due to multi-club ownership rules in a similar circumstance to Palace.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
29 minutes ago
- The Sun
Tom Brady's Birmingham join transfer race for Nottingham Forest midfielder but will have to stump up £8million
NOTTINGHAM FOREST have set their price for in-demand midfielder Lewis O'Brien amid interest from a slew of Championship clubs. Southampton, Hull and Tom Brady-owned Birmingham City are all keen on the 26-year-old this summer. 2 Forest want £8million O'Brien, a figure that could cool the interest of those monitoring him. O'Brien shone on loan at Swansea last season, where he made 16 Championship appearances after making the switch in the winter window. But his eye-catching performances may have worked against him as Forest now chase a bigger fee big fee. Hull have already launched an approach at £5m and may up their offer to land him. O'Brien is in the last year of his deal at Forest having joined the club back in 2022. His time at The City Ground has been a frustrating one, making just 17 first-team appearances since arriving from Huddersfield Town. Instead, O'Brien has had to settle for minutes elsewhere - heading on loan to four separate clubs since his move. Those temporary switches have included spells in the Championship with Middlesbrough and Swansea, as well as two forays to the USA with MLS clubs LA FC and DC United. O'Brien left the door open for a return to Swansea at the end of last season. He said: "I have really enjoyed my time here. It's never out of the question [returning], but sometimes it's not in my hands, especially having to go back to my parent club. "We will see what the summer holds. It's never say never really." Meanwhile Swans manager Alan Sheehan also made it clear he would love O'Brien back in South Wales. He said: "The effect he has had on the place, he has been exceptional. I cannot speak highly enough about him and I make no secret of that. "If he is available, should you try to re-sign him? I think that's quite an obvious answer." 2
The Guardian
42 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Novak Djokovic confident Wimbledon is his ‘best chance' of extending slam record
Novak Djokovic believes that this year's Wimbledon likely represents his best chance of winning a record-extending 25th grand slam title as he tries to disrupt the dominance established by Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz at the biggest tournaments in the world. 'I would probably agree that Wimbledon could be the best chance because of the results I had, because of how I feel, how I play at Wimbledon, just getting that extra push mentally and motivation to perform the best tennis at the highest level,' said Djokovic. The seven-time champion at SW19 returns to the All England Club in an intriguing position. After defeating Alcaraz, the world No 2, en route to the Australian Open semi-finals in January, Djokovic reached the French Open semi-finals with a stellar win over the world No 3, Alexander Zverev, before losing in three tight sets to Sinner. The Serb departed Paris as the third best performer at the grand slam tournaments so far this year and he continues to compete at an extremely high level. At 38, long past his physical peak, the faster, less attritional grass courts are more conducive to his game. 'This year I played two semi-finals. Unfortunately in Australia I had to retire. In Roland Garros I was outplayed by Sinner. I think I still played a decent level of tennis that showed me that I can still play on a very high level at the later stages. That's what is also giving me an extra, I guess motivation to keep going. Obviously clay court, yeah, probably slightly less chances to win compared to grass.' Djokovic, the sixth seed this year, is attempting to break his tie with Pete Sampras and become the joint record holder at the All England Club alongside his great rival Roger Federer with eight titles. A victory would also mark him as the oldest grand slam champion in history. As was the case at the French Open, he is unsure of whether this will be his final appearance at Wimbledon. At such an advanced age in the sport, he has resolved to take things one tournament at a time. Should both players live up to their rankings, Djokovic would face Jack Draper, the British No 1, in the quarter-finals. The fourth seed continued his preparations for Wimbledon on Saturday by working through a friendly practice match with Jacob Fearnley, the British No 2. After suffering with tonsillitis during his semi-final run at Queen's last week, Draper again stressed that he is feeling much better. He rested for two days after Queen's but he has trained consistently since Tuesday. In addition to the challenge of tackling Wimbledon as a top contender for the first time, Draper has been handed an extremely difficult draw with a potential third-round match against Alexander Bublik, the Halle champion and his conqueror at the French Open. Unsurprisingly, Draper has had to field countless questions in interviews on his ability to handle the pressure that comes with his new status. 'Obviously you guys have asked me a lot about the pressure and all that sort of stuff. I'm not thinking about that at all,' he said. 'I'm thinking about how I can play my tennis out there. I'm aware that the crowd is going to really be behind me and support me and want me to drive forward in the tournament. That gives me a huge source of motivation to want to keep on trying to find my level and to try to beat these guys. So I feel good. That's the only thing I can say.' Meanwhile, Sinner, the top seed, declined to elaborate on his surprise decision to part ways with the fitness trainer Marco Panichi and the physiotherapist Ulises Badio after his second-round defeat at Halle last week. 'Nothing major happened,' said Sinner. 'Nothing big happened. I parted ways not long ago, but it's not affecting me. I feel ready to compete. I feel free. I feel me and my team, we are ready to do the best we can. I'm here to play good tennis. I think that's my main goal, the main reason why I'm here. 'We've reached incredible results in the past with them, so obviously huge thanks to them. We made some great job, but I decided to do something different.'
The Sun
44 minutes ago
- The Sun
Why is England star Alex Scott wearing a mask during Under-21 Euros final?
ENGLAND are taking on Germany in the Under-21 Euros final TONIGHT! Lee Carsley 's men are looking to secure back-to-back titles after winning the competition in 2023 with a 1-0 win over Spain. 1 ENGLAND VS GERMANY - U21 EUROS FINAL LIVE The Young Lions booked their spot in the final with a stunning 2-1 win over the Netherlands, with Harvey Elliott scoring a double in the last-4 clash. England must overcome a Germany side that has already got the better of them once in the Euros this summer. Antonio Di Salvo's men beat the Young Lions 2-1 on their way to winning Group B earlier in the competition. Alex Scott was the man on the scoresheet for England, and he didn't just catch the spectators' attention with his close-range finish. The Bournemouth midfielder has been seen donning an unusual mask during the U21 Euros - SunSport brings you all the information on why. Why is England star Alex Scott wearing a mask during Under-21 Euros final? Scott is wearing a specialised mask during the U21 Euros due to a fractured jaw. The 21-year-old's injury occurred when he was caught by the elbow of Aston Villa defender Tyrone Mings last month. He had to wear a chin strap when he came off the bench for the final few seconds of the Cherries' final day victory over Leicester. Scott revealed he had a specialised mask designed for this summer's competition in Slovakia - and he is adamant that it is causing him no issues at all. The Cherries star said: 'It's honestly been fine. Before I had a different mask, which was a lot tougher to wear. 'I tried it out in a few sessions before we came to Slovakia. Thankfully the staff with England managed to do everything they could to get me a new one fitted. 'I've adapted to it well. It gets sweaty so, throughout the games, I try to take it off as much as I can. But it's been fine.' Scott has been a mainstay in the England U21s team this summer, starting all but one of the Young Lions' matches.
