NBA star in consortium to buy out John Textor and save Crystal Palace
FA Cup winners Crystal Palace's hopes of participating in the Europa League had been in doubt due to shareholder John Textor also owning a majority stake in Ligue 1 side Lyon
Six-time NBA All-Star and Olympic gold medallist Jimmy Butler is part of a consortium in talks to buy out John Textor and save Crystal Palace from exclusion from the Europa League. Palace won the FA Cup to appear to book their place in Europe for the first time in their history.
Doubts over their participation began to emerge due to Textor's shareholding in the club. Textor owns a 43 percent stake in the Premier League side through his Eagle Football vehicle.
But that group also has a majority stake in French side Lyon, putting them potentially at odds with UEFA's rules around multi-club ownership. Those rules restrict teams from multi-club groups playing in the same competition.
The deadline set to address any multi-club ownership issues passed on 1 March, the same day Palace beat Millwall in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Lyon meanwhile qualified for the Europa League by finishing sixth in Ligue 1.
Due to finishing higher in their league, Lyon have precedence over Palace when it comes to participating in the Europa League. Textor had hoped to be bought out by one of Palace's other investors, but it now looks like he will be selling to an external consortium.
According to The Athletic, the group is led by former Morgan Stanley sports executive Bejan Esmaili and former Roc Nation attorney Wajid Mir. It also includes Golden States Warrior star Butler.
They are set to make a bid in excess of £150m for the 43 per cent stake Eagle Football currently holds in Palace. Talks with Textor have already been held, though they are facing competition from New York Jets owner Woody Johnson.
A former American ambassador to the UK, Johnson has overseen an awful period for the Jets. They have not featured in the NFL's playoffs for 14 years, double the length of any other drought in the league.
While Johnson has made an offer for Textor's shares, he is yet to meet his fellow American's valuation. Textor is one of four main shareholders in Palace, alongside Josh Harris, who owns the NFL's Washington Commanders, David Blitzer, who controls the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers, and Palace chairman Steve Parish, who has become the face of the club.
While Textor hoped that he would be bought out by those three, no deal has been agreed. They have been approached by Textor but their proposal is said to have fallen short of being accepted.
Palace's four shareholders met with UEFA last week to present a case that Textor does not have control or influence at Palace. Any deal for his shares will be subject to Premier League approval.
It remains to be seen whether UEFA would be satisfied by a binding agreement for Eagle to sell its stake, or whether any deal can reach that stage before the committee makes its decision. Back in May, Textor opened up on his plans to sell.
'We've reached the point where we have a significant investment in a club we hold in the minority (in Palace),' he said. 'We're having extreme success in Brazil and early on in France, (and) to not have that same level of integration with our partner in the UK… it just becomes more and more clear that that level of collaboration we want and need works.'
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