Crystal Palace have launched a bitter attack on UEFA after they were demoted from the Europa League to the Europa Conference League.
The Eagles released a strongly worded statement insisting that it was ‘impossible to get a fair hearing’ after failing with an appeal at the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS).
Palace qualified for the Europa League after beating Manchester City to win the FA Cup last season.
It was a historic milestone for the Eagles as they clinched their first-ever trophy. They claimed another trophy after beating Liverpool on penalties to win the Community Shield on Sunday.
However, their celebrations were tainted when they learned the verdict of their appeal to CAS.
The saga kicked off when UEFA dumped Palace out of the Europa League for breaching multi-club ownership regulations.
The governing body said that American businessman John Textor had decisive influence in both Palace and French club Olympique Lyon.
Lyon had already qualified for the Europa League after finishing sixth in Ligue 1 before Palace’s sensational victory over City in the FA Cup final.
Textor attempted to sell his 43 percent stake in Palace to businessman Woody Johnson, but he had already missed the deadline to make the necessary adjustments.
Palace took the case up with CAS, with chairman Steve Parish attending a marathon 10-hour hearing in Switzerland.
However, Palace learned their fate on Monday when CAS confirmed that the appeal was unsuccessful, meaning they will drop into the Europa Conference League play-offs.
Their fixture schedule has already been confirmed with Oliver Glasner’s side set to face either Fredrikstad or FC Midtjylland on August 21.
Nottingham Forest will take Palace’s place in the Europa League. In a scathing statement, Palace accused UEFA of undermining ‘sporting merit’.
The statement read: “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.
“It appears that certain clubs, organisations and individuals have a unique privilege and power.
“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.
“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.”
