Crystal Palace: Uefa delays decision on club’s Europa League fate

A decision on whether Crystal Palace can compete in next season’s Europa League has been delayed by Uefa.

The Eagles’ place, earned by winning the FA Cup last season, has been under threat because of Uefa’s multi-club ownership rules, which prevents teams under the same ownership from competing in the same European competition.

Co-owner John Textor, who also co-owns French club Lyon, has agreed to sell his 44% stake in Palace in a bid to help their case.

A decision on Palace’s participation had been expected on Monday.

However, Lyon were demoted to Ligue 2 last week by the French football authorities on account of their poor finances.

The club are appealing against the decision but should they fail, they have agreed to relinquish their Europa League spot.

Uefa has therefore opted to wait until the outcome of the appeal before making a decision on Palace’s participation.

It is not known how long Lyon’s appeal will take, with Uefa stating further details will be announced in “due course”.

Should Palace be granted a spot in the competition, they will enter the group phase – which begins in September.

Textor is in the process of selling his stake in Palace to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson.

The American, 59, resigned from his leadership role at Lyon on Monday after deciding to step back from the day-to-day running of the club, in which he owns a 77% stake.

Last October, Textor’s Eagle Football Group announced debts of £422m at Lyon.

The club said the decision to demote them into Ligue 2 was “incomprehensible” and that they would appeal the decision.