Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish has confirmed the club will appeal Uefa's decision to demote them from the Europa League to the Conference League as a result of their multi-club ownership rules, blasting it as “the greatest injustice in the history of football”.
Rewind back two months, Crystal Palace lifted their first-ever trophy, beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, marking the most significant milestone in the club’s 160-year history.
The cup did not just signify their success of the season, but also meant automatic qualification to the Europa League, which would be just the second time the club had ever participated in a European competition.
However, in recent weeks, dreams of a Europa League campaign have been crushed by Uefa, who announced its decision to demote the Eagles to the Conference League due to its strict multi-club ownership rules.
Crystal Palace won the FA Cup in May, the first trophy in their 160-year history
Getty
The ruling occurred due to co-owner John Textor, who owned 44.9 per cent of the club while also having a majority share in French side Lyon, who also qualified for the Europa League by finishing sixth in their domestic league.
Despite agreeing to sell his stake to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson in a deal worth around £190million last month that is waiting to be cleared by the Premier League, Uefa ruled the two clubs could not compete in the same competition. Another Uefa rule states that Lyon will compete in the Europa League instead because they finished higher in the league than Palace.
Parish has blasted the decision, claiming the club is “devastated”, but confirmed they will appeal the decision.
JUST IN: Novak Djokovic makes retirement decision after Wimbledon thrashing
Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish said the club are 'devastated' over the 'ludicrous' decision
Sky Sports
“We’re devastated, we're devastated for the supporters, the players and the staff,” he said. “Supporters of all clubs should be devastated for us. This is the dream. You win a cup, actually win something for the first time in your history.
“It's like winning the lottery, going to the counter, and you don't get the prize.
“It's a bad day for football. Most right-minded football fans will see what a terrible injustice this is for the football club and one I dearly hope somebody can remedy.
“So this is just such an incredible travesty of justice. It’s a ludicrous decision. The question now is whether UEFA intervene and do the right thing, which they should.
READ MORE: Liverpool retire No20 shirt at all levels in honour of Diogo Jota's death
“Or, do they let this process play out and see probably one of the greatest injustices that have happened in European football?”
The ruling is enforced if an owner has decisive influence at both clubs - something Textor and Palace both deny is the case.
Despite Textor’s significant shareholdings, the American only held 25 per cent of voting power, meaning he could not influence decisions.
In a recent interview with TalkSPORT, Textor explained: “Parish is making decisions. He’s bringing us players. He involves us, but he doesn’t really listen to us. He does, but a suggestion from time to time is not the same as decisive influence.”
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
- Novak Djokovic told to 'retire immediately' after crushing Wimbledon defeat
- Crystal Palace thrown out of Europa League as UEFA confirm rules breach
- Wimbledon runs out of Evian water as bottles taken off shelves in sweltering heat
Crystal Palace co-owner John Textor spoke to TalkSPORT's Simon Jordan on the issue
TalkSPORT
Textor also owns a majority share in Brazilian side Botafogo, who recently beat European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup.
Igor Jesus and Jair Cunha recently left the Brazilian club for the Premier League, but joined Nottingham Forest instead of Palace - something Textor says proves he does not have a decisive influence.
“If I had a decisive influence, then those Brazilian players that just beat PSG in the Club World Cup, half of them would be coming to Crystal Palace next year,” Textor explained.
“But you don’t see one single player from our network of clubs that’s made its way on to the Palace roster, which is the source of my frustration with the lack of collaboration that we’ve been able to have with Crystal Palace.
“I am dumb enough and successful enough to not predict in advance what a governing body is going to say.”
Parish also confirmed the Eagles are “not part of a multi-club organisation” and that “John nor anybody” had “decisive influence”.
The decision leaves Nottingham Forest the fortunate club that faces promotion from the Conference League to replace Palace, but the chairman insisted Forest fans would not want to qualify in such a way.
He concluded: “A lot of Forest fans have reached out to me and said that they don't want to get access to the tournament this way.
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner
REUTERS"Forest are a fantastic club and they had their Black Swan event in the past. These things have an incredible effect on football teams.
“You get your one shot. This is our one shot of the Europa League in 164 years.
"I can't believe that a football club, with that story, that history, one very similar to ours, would really want to be a part of taking this away from us.”