Latest news with #multi-club ownership
Daily Mail
18-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
What a mess Crystal Palace's European saga is - and the blame lies with UEFA, writes MIKE KEEGAN
The law is an ass – and with every passing day its enforcement appears to resemble a donkey derby. UEFA first introduced rules on multi-club ownership in 1998. The aim was to prevent collusion. How is that working out? In recent times Red Bull Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg have competed in the Champions League, as have Girona and Manchester City, who both come under the City Football Group. Why? Because their owners, well aware of the steps needed, ticked the relevant boxes in time. Indeed, when it looked like Nottingham Forest and Olympiakos may both qualify for the Champions League – and potentially breach the rules – Evangelos Marinakis did what everyone else in that position does and placed his shares in Forest into a blind trust. What Palace are guilty of is not colluding with Lyon, who are owned by former major shareholder John Textor, but of failing to play along with the game. Unsurprisingly, they are now in war mode at Selhurst Park ahead of an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The shovels are out and it would appear that the digging is unearthing all manner of dirt. As Mail Sport has revealed, Palace are expected to demand that UEFA hands over what they believe are bombshell emails and texts that exist between the governing body and Nottingham Forest. UEFA introduced multi-club ownership rules to prevent collusion, but that has hardly worked They are firmly of the view that the documents prove that Forest were given extra time beyond the March 1 deadline to comply with the rules. As it turned out, Marinakis was removed as a person of significant control of NF Football Investments, the vehicle that owns the club, on April 30. Should Palace succeed with their demand, they believe the documents would represent the smoking gun they need to present to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) as it would clearly indicate double standards. Furthermore, UEFA's case stands and falls on the March 1 deadline, which was brought forward for this season. Confirmation of an extension for one and not another would at the very least raise serious questions. When Mail Sport asked chairman Steve Parish for his observations following Palace's crunch hearing at UEFA HQ, he declined to comment. However, earlier this week, he took a swipe at the 'beneficiaries'. 'If there wasn't someone who wanted to get in as a consequence, then there wouldn't be a problem,' he told The Rest is Football podcast. 'People have to look at themselves in terms of what they do. Some people say it's fine, some say it's not. I don't have control of that. I have control of the arguments we put forward to UEFA.' But Forest are looking out for, rather than at, themselves, which ironically is the sole thing every Premier League club has in common. At the City Ground they were aware of the initial deadline and of the issue and reacted accordingly, albeit even if they did need additional time. As things transpired, Forest did not qualify for the Champions League and so there may be an element of the red herring. It is impossible not to feel sympathy for Palace and their fans. The enemy here, however, lies at the side of Lake Geneva, rather than the River Trent.
Telegraph
17-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The email that could save Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace's case to be reinstated to the Europa League has been boosted by the emergence of an email sent last year by the association of clubs that runs European football with Uefa. The European Club Association (ECA) told several multi-club ownership groups in October that the March 1 deadline, which has been used to eject Crystal Palace from the Europa League, was not set in stone. In the email, the ECA, which is run by Nasser Al-Khelaifi, said that Uefa would allow outstanding issues to be resolved up to May 31. Uefa announced last week that Palace were to be demoted from the Europa League because they did not resolve multi-club ownership issues relating to former shareholder John Textor, by a deadline of March 1. Uefa's club financial control body, has been adamant that the deadline, moved earlier for this season only, is sacrosanct. However, there is mounting evidence that is not the case. The ECA negotiates the distribution of all revenue from Uefa club competitions, with discussions between Al-Khelaifi and Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin about who earns what from the most lucrative competitions in football. As a consequence, when the ECA advises clubs on Uefa policy, as in this October 25 email, member clubs can assume that the governing body's position is being outlined. Multi-club ownership issue resolved, but not in time The ECA declined to comment but it is understood it believes the email in question reflected its understanding of Uefa's position in October. Uefa, it is believed, then changed its position in November. Nevertheless, Telegraph Sport understands that many clubs approached the end of the season believing that they had time solve any multi-club ownership issues beyond March 1. The whole Uefa case against Palace rests on whether the March 1 deadline applies. Other clubs – including Chelsea, Barcelona and Aston Villa – have all negotiated fines for financial breaches as recently as this month. Palace's argument has long been that the March 1 deadline is arbitrary and that, in good time for next season, the club has extricated itself from any possible multi-club ownership problems. Textor sold his 43 per cent stake in Eagle Football, which also owns Lyon, to US billionaire Woody Johnson on June 23. Nevertheless, Palace have been told by Uefa that on the basis of Textor historically owning a stake in Palace and Lyon, it is the French club that will take the Europa League place. Palace chairman Steve Parish has pointed out that Textor had no decisive influence on the club, and that Palace and Lyon shared no resources – players, staff or infrastructure. Forest were also in breach of the rules Palace's Europa League place will be taken by Nottingham Forest, whose owner Evangelos Marinakis also owns more than one club and also did not meet the March 1 Uefa deadline to solve this problem: Marinakis did not divest himself of his directorship of the Premier League club until April 29. In the event that was academic, with Forest failing to qualify for the Champions League and thus not establishing a possible multi-club ownership breach by entering the same competition as Olympiakos, Marinakis' Greek club. Nevertheless, Uefa has refused to disclose any correspondence about Forest's multi-club ownership issues. That has prompted concern among the three clubs, including Palace, that have lost Uefa places because of multi-club ownership problems. Uefa has advised multi-club ownership groups that a 'blind trust' structure is acceptable for the purpose of its rules. Other multi-club organisations – including the Red Bull group, City Football Group and Ineos – have complied with Uefa regulations by transferring part or all of the ownership temporarily to a blind trust so that teams within the group can play in the same Uefa competition. Speaking in 2023 to a US podcast, Ceferin admitted that Uefa turned a blind eye to multi-club ownership. He said at the time: 'There are clubs – or at least one – where we still pretend it's not the same owner [as another] but it's the same owner, and I will not tell you which. You can guess.'
BBC News
15-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Burnley ownership to acquire Espanyol
Burnley's owners Velocity Sport Limited have agreed a deal to acquire La Liga side means the Clarets become the latest team to join the multi-club ownership model a number of teams in the Premier League already play in the top tier of Spanish football, where they finished 14th last season, two points above the relegation two clubs will continue to run separately but will now be part of the same ownership group."With this deal, RC Espanyol and Burnley will be part of this investment group, which expands its interests by having a club in La Liga and another in the Premier League - although each will remain independent," Espanyol said in a Sport Limited, the sports investment arm of ALK Capital, took over Burnley in December 2020.
France 24
11-07-2025
- Business
- France 24
Crystal Palace demoted to UEFA Conference League for multi-club breach
US businessman John Textor owns a stake in the Eagles and is the majority owner of French club Lyon, who have also qualified for the Europa League. Under UEFA multi-club ownership rules, Lyon have been allowed to keep their place in the second-tier competition of European football as they finished higher in Ligue 1 (6th) than Palace (12th) in the Premier League last season. Palace qualified for European competition for the first time by winning the FA Cup in May - the club's first ever major trophy. Textor has since agreed to sell his 43 percent stake in the London club to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson. However, that deal is yet to be completed and was struck well after UEFA's deadline of March 1 for multi-club conflicts to be resolved. A decision on Palace's fate had been delayed by a separate case that initially saw Lyon relegated to the second tier of French football due to financial problems. The seven-time French champions won an appeal against that decision on Wednesday after Textor stood aside from the day-to-day running of the club. Palace are expected to appeal the verdict to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Nottingham Forest, who had qualified for the Conference League by finishing seventh in the Premier League last season, will replace Palace in the Europa League, a UEFA source told AFP.
Reuters
11-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Crystal Palace dropped to UEFA's Conference League in multi-club ownership case
July 11 (Reuters) - Premier League side Crystal Palace have been dropped in European competition to the third-tier Conference League in a multi-club ownership case, while Olympique Lyonnais will be allowed to play in the Europa League, UEFA said on Friday. Palace had qualified for the Europa League by winning the FA Cup last season, while Lyon reached the competition by finishing sixth in Ligue 1. A move to relegate them to France's domestic second-tier Ligue 2 over their poor finances was overturned on Wednesday, a decision UEFA's Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) had been waiting for before ruling on the multi-club ownership case. "Consequently, the CFCB First Chamber pursued the assessment of the documentation submitted by Olympique Lyonnais and Crystal Palace and concluded that the clubs breached, as at 1 March 2025, the multi-club ownership criteria," UEFA said in a statement. As both Lyon and Palace had qualified for the Europa League, the French club were allowed to keep their place as they finished higher in their respective league, with Palace finishing 12th in the Premier League. The Eagle Football Group are majority owners of Lyon while its chairman John Textor also owns a controlling stake in Palace. Textor later resigned from Lyon's board of directors with Michele Kang appointed chairwoman and president. Palace said last month that New York Jets co-owner Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson had signed a legally binding agreement to buy Eagle Football Holding's stake in the Premier League club, subject to approval from the Premier League. However, Palace had missed the March deadline to comply with the multi-club ownership rules. "Honestly, I am stunned. We did everything possible to separate from the club, as UEFA would ask, with a sale process that began before the deadline, and a sale that will occur well before the draw," Textor told Reuters. "Now we have sold out of a club that I love, to help Palace fans continue this dream year, only to have another off-the-pitch decision lay waste to an historic sporting victory." Lyon had been demoted by the DNCG, French football's financial watchdog, in November due to the poor state of their finances but their relegation to Ligue 2 was overturned by its appeals committee. Palace can still appeal the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport but if UEFA's decision stands, the rules could allow Nottingham Forest to play in the Europa League if they fulfil the admission criteria. Forest had finished seventh last season and originally qualified for the Conference League while fifth-placed Aston Villa and Palace had qualified for the Europa League. The rules say no club may hold or deal in securities or shares of any other club participating in UEFA's competitions and that no club can be a member of any other club participating in UEFA competitions. Furthermore, no one person has the power to be simultaneously involved in management, administration and/or sporting performance of any club and they must not have any control or decisive influence over more than one club.
