Crystal Palace’s ‘disgraceful treatment’ reaches Government ahead of CAS appeal
Crystal Palace fans are planning to head to Switzerland to protest outside UEFA’s headquarters whilst several MPs have urged the government to intervene.
The Eagles’ 1-0 FA Cup final victory over Man City not only brought silverware to Selhurst Park for the first time ever, but also the opportunity to compete in the Europa League.
But John Textor’s multi-club ownership model has caused all sorts of problems.
Whilst the US businessman has since sold his Palace shares to Woody Johnson, his majority shareholding in both the Eagles and French side Lyon violates UEFA‘s rules.
And despite the South London clubs’ insistence that Textor had no involvement in the running of the club, the European governing body have relegated the Premier League side to the Conference League.
Unsurprisingly, this has not gone down well. Chairman Steve Parish has been vocal about his disdain for the decision and Palace will challenge the ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), and according to The Guardian, the debacle has now reached the British government.
MPs write to government urging intervention
As reported, seven Liberal Democrat MPs from South London have written to Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary, “urging her to intervene over Crystal Palace’s demotion from the Europa League”.
Those included party leader Ed Davey, and Bobby Dean, MP for the Carshalton and Wallington constituency which contains “many Palace supporters”.
They have expressed their concerns over the club’s “disgraceful treatment” and have also requested thatt the secretary of state for culture, media and sport ensure “the decision-making process is reviewed for transparency and fairness” and “the club is given a fair opportunity to appeal or respond to any allegations”.
Fans from the club’s most influential supporters’ group are now planning “to take its protest to UEFA’s headquarters in Switzerland”.
Crystal Palace fail to take accountability for their shortcomings
Football Insider Verdict
Removing Palace from the Europa League is brutal for fans of the club, and their desire to seek justice is wholly warranted.
However, in one of the few instances in the organisation’s existence, UEFA are not in the wrong here.
The governing body gave Palace plenty of time and several warnings of what would happen if the club failed to comply with their rules.
Letters and emails were sent to all Premier League clubs outlining the rule change, and the league itself sent out a reminder to its participants.
Yes, Palace earning a spot in Europe was unprecedented and unexpected, but as long as there’s a chance, why risk your spot by not following the guidelines clearly outlined?
The Eagles have had several opportunities to convince UEFA as to why they should be a Europa League team next season, and behind closed doors, whatever their argument was, it clearly failed to resonate, even in spite of the organisation’s desire to keep the club in Europe’s second-tier competition.
Like it or not, this failing is on Palace’s leadership, and the protests are likely to be in vain, given CAS’s previous rulings against Drogheda and Club Leon for similar disputes.