Crystal Palace have blasted “meaningless” UEFA and CAS after their appeal against demotion from Europa League to Conference League proved unsuccessful.
Palace qualified for this season’s Europa League by virtue of having won last season’s FA Cup but multi-club ownership rules meant that they were demoted to the Conference League, which was officially confirmed yesterday following an unsuccessful appeal to Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Following a period of reflection as the news followed their FA Community Shield success less than 24 hours earlier, Palace released a statement in which they blasted UEFA and CAS for disregard of “sporting merit” over multi-club ownership rules.
“At a time when we should be celebrating our victory in the Community Shield at Wembley, the decision by UEFA and followed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport shows that sporting merit is rendered meaningless.
“When we won the FA Cup against Manchester City on that momentous day in May, our manager and players earned the right to play Europa League football.
“We have been denied that opportunity.”
Palace proceeded to stick the knife in further as they accused UEFA plus unnamed clubs and individuals of holding unique privilege and power” to stifle the competitiveness of the sport to favour the big-name teams with superior financial power who use “blind trust” and “informal arrangements” to bend rules.
“It appears that certain clubs, organisations and individuals have a unique privilege and power.
“This growing and unhealthy influence has shattered the hopes and dreams of Crystal Palace supporters, and does not bode well for aspirational teams all over Europe competing to progress when rules and sanctions are unevenly applied in the most flagrant way.
“Multi-club structures hide behind the charade of a “blind trust” while clubs such as ours, who have no connection to another club whatsoever, are prevented from playing in the same competition.
“To compound the injustice, clubs that appear to have huge informal arrangements with each other are also allowed to participate and even possibly play against each other.”
CAS also didn’t escape Palace’s fury as they alleged that they didn’t “receive a fair hearing” through “lack of formality and respect”, which included refusal to call witnesses.
“While we respect the CAS tribunal members, the process is designed to severely restrict and, in our case, make it almost impossible to receive a fair hearing.
“The denial of all disclosure requests to obtain correspondence between the relevant parties, the refusal to allow witness testimony from those involved, and the general lack of formality and respect for law mean decisions cannot be properly challenged, leading to pre-determined outcomes.”
Palace consequently wants to use this controversy as fuel for change so that teams who unexpectedly achieve European qualification have time to resolve ownership issues.
“UEFA’s decision has wider implications for the governance of the sport. A combination of poorly conceived regulations and their unequal application means our brilliant fans will be deprived of the chance to watch this team compete in the Europa League for the first time in our history.
“This should be a turning point for football.
“UEFA must fulfil its mandate to pass coherent rules which are properly communicated and applied, with reasonable cure periods to resolve uncertainty and consistent sanctions, treating all clubs equally with a proper appeal process.
“The European Court of Justice has made it clear that rulings similar to this will be under greater scrutiny from national courts in future. Only then will fairness and due process be granted to every team.”
Palace nevertheless will focus on preparations for their Conference League qualifiers but have vowed to continue pursuing legal advice.
“Although we continue to take legal advice on the next steps, we will compete in the Conference League with the same determination and will to win that characterises this incredible club.”
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