Crystal Palace lose appeal against Europa League expulsion

Crystal Palace have lost their appeal against UEFA’s decision to expel them from the Europa League and will play in the Conference League this season.

Palace appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after being removed from Europe’s second-tier competition due to a third-party ownership issue in July.

The FA Cup and Community Shield victors were denied entry into the Europa League due to John Textor owning stakes in both Palace and Lyon, who qualified for the same competition, with Conference League qualifiers Nottingham Forest replacing them.

Palace argued that Textor – who has since left his roles at both clubs – had no “decisive influence” at Selhurst Park, with chairman Steve Parish also claiming Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis lobbied for the Eagles’ demotion.

But on Monday, it was confirmed Palace’s appeal had been denied at a CAS hearing, with a three-person panel concluding that “the UEFA Regulations are clear and do not provide flexibility to clubs that are non-compliant on the assessment date.”

Official club statement following today’s decision by UEFA.#CPFC

— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) July 11, 2025

The panel also rejected an argument from Palace that they had received unfair treatment in comparison to Forest and Lyon.

As a result of the ruling, Palace will face either Midtjylland or Fredrikstad in the Conference League play-offs, with the former holding a 3-1 lead from the first leg.

Forest will advance directly to the Europa League group stage, with reports suggesting Palace could miss out on £20m in revenue.