Palace considering legal action over possible Europa League ban

Crystal Palace have grown increasingly exasperated at the delay in Uefa's ruling over their Europa League future and feel they are being unfairly treated, BBC Sport understands.

Well-placed sources have indicated the south London club will also almost certainly launch a legal fight against any decision to ban them from the competition next season.

There are frustrations at Selhurst Park that the delay in ruling whether Palace have breached multi-club ownership (MCO) rules in relation to American businessman John Textor's involvement at Palace and Lyon is aiding the French club's fight to stay in next season's Europa League at the expense of the Eagles.

Uefa were due to reveal on 27 June whether Palace were cleared to play - but the decision was put back to this week.

On Monday, the governing body confirmed a final decision would be postponed until Lyon's domestic appeal against their relegation from the French top flight.

Despite their enforced relegation, Lyon can currently compete in European competitions next season.

However, if the French football authorities uphold Lyon's demotion into Ligue 2, Lyon would relinquish their licence to play in Uefa competition - paving the way for Palace to play in the Europa League.

Uefa's decision to wait is believed to have annoyed members of Palace's hierarchy, who feel the club are being unfairly treated because of their lack of pedigree at European level.

There is a sense at Palace that Lyon are being afforded extra time to get their finances in order to aid their relegation appeal, while Palace are being penalised for missing Uefa's 1 March deadline to re-organise their ownership structure to comply with MCO regulations.

Textor - who owns Eagle Football Holdings, which currently owns stakes in Palace and Lyon - announced his decision to step down from his leadership roles at Lyon on Monday.

The restructure of the board at Lyon is expected to aid the French club's hopes of overturning their domestic relegation.

Well-placed sources have also suggested to BBC Sport that Lyon are open to selling a number of their players to raise funds to ease their current financial problems.

It is not lost on Palace officials that the deal to sell Textor's 43% stake in Palace to American businessman Woody Johnson last week - a transaction worth in the region of £190m - may have contributed to easing Lyon's financial plight.

It is important to stress Uefa have no jurisdiction over Lyon's relegation appeal.

In their view, Palace are one of the most well-run sides, financially, in England. Their clean track record in terms of staying the right side of financial regulations indicative of their prudency.

The fact Lyon's financial state is so chaotic they have provisionally been demoted from the top league is not lost on figures at Palace.

Nor is the irony of the Premier League side losing their place in the Europa League to Lyon given the juxtaposition between their respective balance sheets.

For the time being, Palace's European fate appears to be in the hands of the French football governance system.

Whether Lyon's relegation to Ligue 2 is now upheld remains to be seen amid a feeling that doing so would devalue the French top flight.

There are varying levels of scepticism as to whether there is a will in France to forcibly remove one their most prestigious clubs from the top flight given the uncertainty surrounding it's TV revenue.

There were reports in May that sports broadcaster DAZN terminated its five-year domestic broadcast contract with France's Professional Football League (LFP) for Ligue 1 after just one season.

DAZN paid a reported 400m euros for the domestic rights over five years. In contrast, in 2023, the Premier League received £6.7bn for a four-year contract - which starts next season - for Sky and TNT to show up to 270 live games a season.

Indeed, there is a concern that relegating Lyon would put Ligue 1 at a disadvantage in terms of its popularity and global attraction.