Latest news with #Olympiakos
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Nottingham Forest complain to Uefa over Crystal Palace's European place
Nottingham Forest have written to Uefa to raise concerns about Crystal Palace's planned partaking in the Europa League next season, arguing their Premier League rivals could be in breach of multi-club ownership rules. Forest stand to gain if Palace are not permitted to play in Europe next season because they would take Palace's place in the Europa League. There is scope for a legal battle given Forest believe they have grounds to play in the competition. The Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, who also owns Greek champions Olympiakos, placed his shares into a blind trust to comply with Uefa rules in the event Forest qualified for the Champions League. Forest believe there is a conflict of interest because the Palace shareholder John Textor also owns a stake in Ligue 1 club Lyon, who have provisionally qualified for the Europa League. Palace qualified for Europe after winning the FA Cup while Forest qualified for the Conference League after finishing seventh in the most recent Premier League season. Textor is thought to be trying to find a solution in order to meet Uefa regulations. Last week Palace shareholders Textor and Steve Parish, the chairman, attended a meeting at Uefa's headquarters in Nyon to fight their club's case to play in Europe without reaching agreement. The Guardian reported that the blind trust option in which Textor's Palace shares would be placed in the hands of trustees next season was rejected by European football's governing body because the club missed the deadline for doing so. Palace's European position is under threat rather than Lyon's, as Uefa rules state that the club ranked highest in their domestic championship will be given entry to the competition. Lyon's sixth-place finish in Ligue 1 gives them precedence over Palace, who came 12th in the Premier League. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Forest declined to comment when contacted by the Guardian.
The National
30-05-2025
- Sport
- The National
Cyriel Dessers addresses Rangers transfer exit speculation
The much-maligned hitman ended last season with 29 goals despite frustrating with his all round play and missed chances to score even more. It has still been one school of thought that Gers could cash in and replace the Nigerian with a more rounded striker - especially as there always seems to be interest in Dessers. Talk around a potential exit for the 30-year-old wouldn't go away in January and there appears to be further interest for the summer window, reports linking him with the likes of Olympiakos and AEK Athens in the Greek Super League. Dessers is contracted until 2027 and says he would be more than happy to see that out, hinting the rumours about a move to Greece may be just that - rumours. Speaking to SportsBoom, he said: "I still have two years left on my contract with Rangers. It's a fantastic club, and I'm happy there. "When you score that number of goals, it's normal for other teams to show interest. I've seen the links with Olympiacos, but I don't know anything specific about that. Read more: What Arne Slot thinks about 'very good' Rangers contender Francesco Farioli Francesco Farioli's Ajax exit explained amid Rangers boss talks "These kinds of rumours are normal, but for now, I'm staying focused and looking forward to enjoying my holiday in a few weeks." Dessers admits it was a disappointment for his club not to pick up any silverware last season but feels he can be happy about his campaign from an individual point of view. He added: "From a team perspective, at Rangers, we needed to win a big trophy. Unfortunately, we didn't achieve that last season. That was disappointing. "But on a personal level, I scored 30 goals, and I can be proud of that. "Phillipe Clement is a good coach. We started the season with him, and later Barry Ferguson came in as caretaker manager. It's never easy to take over a team in the middle of a challenging season, but Barry worked hard to turn things around and get everyone on the same page.
BBC News
27-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Is the Conference League a major trophy?
The Conference League has been deemed a major competition by Uefa since its introduction at the start of the 2021-22 it was brought in, Europe's third-tier club tournament led to a reduction in teams in the Europa League, and was designed to favour qualification for sides from lower-ranked European Mourinho's Roma won the competition in its first season, and their first major European trophy led the Portuguese to declare: "We made history."After David Moyes lifted the trophy as West Ham boss in 2023, he described it as the "biggest moment" of his last year the competition allowed Olympiakos to become the first Greek club to win a major European Wednesday's final, Chelsea can become the first club to complete the full set of major European trophies, while Real Betis are hoping to emulate Roma and Olympiakos by winning their first. Why was the Conference League created? Uefa said having three competitions - the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League - would ensure at least 34 national associations were represented in the group stage of one or more the Conference League's introduction, the Europa League was reduced from a 48-team competition to 32 teams but has since changed to 36 - mirroring the new Champions League format.A total of 32 teams play in the Conference League from the league phase top 12 nations - based on Uefa's association ranking - are only given one Conference League place each before teams - who fail to qualify for the Europa League - are taken into who miss out on qualifying for the Europa League must progress through at least one round of 2024-25, 29 different European nations were represented in the competition's league phase, with Wales and Northern Ireland in for the first the seven teams to reach the final in its four-season history, including Real Betis and Chelsea, five have been from teams across Europe's top three ranked winner of the competition is handed direct entry into next season's Europa League. If that club has already qualified for the Champions League then they are given a article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. What is Ask Me Anything? Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you team will find out everything you need to know and be able to call upon a network of contacts including our experts and will be answering your questions from the heart of the BBC Sport newsroom, and going behind the scenes at some of the world's biggest sporting coverage will span the BBC Sport website, app, social media and YouTube accounts, plus BBC TV and radio. More questions answered... Who has qualified for the 2025-26 Champions League?How are host stadiums for European finals chosen?VAR - your questions answeredHow much was the Europa League final worth for Tottenham?
Edmonton Journal
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Edmonton Journal
Nottingham Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi reportedly placed in induced coma
Article content However, Awoniyi was in discomfort for the rest of the game, effectively leaving Forest down to 10 players and hampering its hopes of a winner. In its statement, Forest said Marinakis' post-match reaction 'was one of deep care, responsibility, and emotional investment in one of our own.' 'In moments like that, he demonstrates his leadership, not just through words, but through action and presence,' the statement read. 'In the final 10 minutes of the game, when he saw our player clearly in discomfort, struggling through visible pain, it became increasingly difficult for him to stay on the sidelines. 'His deep frustration at seeing our player lying on the ground in severe pain — something no one with genuine care could ignore — triggered him to go onto the pitch. It was instinctive, human, and a reflection of just how much this team and its people mean to him.' Marinakis relinquished his position as a person with significant control of Forest in recent weeks as the club closed in on unlikely Champions League qualification. UEFA has rules to bar clubs from its competitions in any season if owners have 'decisive influence' over two clubs which qualify. Marinakis is also president of Olympiakos, which has qualified as Greek champion. With two rounds of the season to go, Forest is seventh — one point behind fifth-placed Chelsea. The top five will qualify for the Champions League.
The Guardian
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Marinakis allowed to continue hands-on approach at Forest despite shares switch
Evangelos Marinakis will be permitted to continue his hands-on approach to running Nottingham Forest next season despite relinquishing his shares in the club. The Greek billionaire was strongly criticised for storming on to the pitch to confront the manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, following Sunday's 2-2 draw with Leicester, which left Forest seventh in the table as they attempt to qualify for the Champions League for the first time. Marinakis's Greek club, Olympiakos, have already secured their Champions League place for next season and he announced last month that he has placed his Forest shares in a so-called 'blind trust' to ensure compliance with Uefa regulations if they also qualify. Marinakis's Forest shares are now managed by several trustees who were appointed directors of the club last month – Matthew Shayle, Matthew Cain and Timothy Osborne – although Marinakis was not actually on the board in the first place. The Guardian has learned, however, that there are no conditions in the blind trust arrangement sanctioned by Uefa to restrict Marinakis's attendance at matches, deny him access to any part of the stadium or to prevent him speaking to the manager or players. A source close to the 57-year-old added that he will continue offering opinions and guidance in a personal capacity. The day-to-day running of Forest is in the hands of chief executive officer, Lina Souloukou, who is close to Marinakis after spending four years as chief executive at Olympiakos, while 20% shareholder Sokratis Kominakis returned to the club's board last month. Marinakis's compliance with Uefa's regulations will be monitored by its Club Financial Control Body (CFCB), although it will focus on restricting his financial rather than his emotional involvement. Forest have already submitted details of their new ownership structure to Uefa, who have passed it on to the CFCB for approval. Marinakis's response to Uefa's multi-club ownership rules is considerably different to that of Sir Jim Ratcliffe. The Manchester United co-owner did not attend a single Nice match this season after he parked his shares when both the French club and United qualified for the Europa League. The Leicester draw secured European qualification for Forest for the first time in 30 years, although reaching the Champions League is no longer in their hands, as Chelsea and Aston Villa both have one more point with just two games remaining. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Beyond the disappointing result Marinakis was unhappy with Nuno on Sunday for failing to replace substitute Taiwo Awoniyi after he collided with a post. Awoniyi could barely run for the last 10 minutes leaving Forest short as they chased a late winner after relegated Leicester twice came from behind. Marinakis was given a five-game stadium ban by the FA earlier this season after spitting on the floor as match officials walked past him in the tunnel following a home defeat by Fulham in September. The FA is not intending to take further disciplinary action against him following his one-man pitch invasion against Leicester.
