- Ex-Crystal Palace co-owner John Textor Loses Multi-Club Control
- The American sold his stake in the Eagles last year
- Fans react to the news
John Textor has lost control of his multi-club group, Eagle Football, much to the amusement of Crystal Palace fans. The American businessman sold his stake in the Premier League club last summer to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson for £190 million.
That means Palace are not affected, as Textor no longer holds any shares in the club. He paid £86 million for a 43 per cent stake in the South London outfit back in 2021.
Textor was largely to blame for UEFA’s decision to remove Oliver Glasner’s side from the Europa League. The club were relegated to the Conference League for breaking UEFA’s multi-club rules, as Lyon, in which the American also holds shares, had also qualified for the competition.
Crystal Palace Not Affected by Textor Turmoil
Textor suggested his decision to sell his shares in Palace were due to a lack of collaboration with the co-owners. He told The Athletic at the time:
“I believe Eagle is probably known to be the most collaborative multi-club in terms of the player movements between the clubs.”
He added:
“It has disappointed me that our English league partner [Palace] has chosen not to accept any of our obviously qualified players from top teams, top leagues, and top national teams, and so to really promise player pathways to the players that we meet in different parts of the world, we have to have a collaborative UK partner.”
He continued:
“That collaboration needs to go two ways and it doesn’t currently with Crystal Palace. That’s the reason we chose to sell.“
Palace were still removed from the Europa League despite Textor selling his stake in the club. But his Eagle Football empire has since encountered issues that have led to its US investment firm, Ares Capital Corporation, placing the group’s UK-based holding company into administration.
Administrators are now looking for buyers for Eagle’s minority stakes in French club Lyon, Brazilian outfit Botafogo and Belgium side RWDM Brussels. Textor is fighting on multiple legal fronts, but his five-year run in world football looks likely to end.
‘Steve Pulled His Pants Down’
Textor suggested several times that he intended to gain more influence at Palace. He tried purchasing a controlling stake, and when that failed, he looked at other English clubs, including Everton and Sheffield Wednesday.
The irony of the investor now looking at risk of losing his multi-club empire isn’t lost on the club’s fanbase. Many point out how current chairman Steve Parish played a blinder by securing more funds which played a role in last season’s FA Cup win.
One fan responded to a tweet from HLTCO on X:
“Very,very few Palace fans appreciate how far Steve pulled his pants down to get us to where we are right now. He got Textor to buy half the club with 0 Boardroom clout and that started the 5 year cycle that resulted in us winning our 1st Trophies. No ambition though.”
Another added:
“Chunk of delusional Palace fans were giving Parish stick for not selling to this clown.”
One replied:
“And to think there were people who wanted him to take over at our club.”
Another fan responded on Reddit:
“We narrowly dodged a bullet with this one.”
One added:
“Very glad that we didn’t give this idiot more control at Palace.”
Palace’s current ownership includes Woody Johnson who is the club’s largest shareholder after buying Textor’s stake. Steve Parish serves as co-owner and chairman alongside general partner Josh Harris and David Blitzer.
