Crystal Palace have received a massive fine after being charged by the FA for an offensive banner aimed towards Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis. Forest capitalised upon Palace's demotion to the UEFA Conference League due to breaches surrounding multi-club ownership. The Reds took the Eagles' place in the Europa League with Eagles fans blaming Marinakis for the demotion.
Getty Images SportTrophy haul dampened by demotion
Palace booked a Europa League spot having beaten Manchester City in the FA Cup final in May. Eberechi Eze's first half strike at Wembley was enough to separate the two sides as the south London side secured their first major piece of silverware in their history.
The Eagles then won the Community Shield against Liverpool in the Premier League's curtain raiser in August but the trophy successes were overshadowed by Palace's demotion to the UEFA Conference League. The south London side appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, but were left frustrated as the CAS sided with UEFA.
"The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed an appeal by Crystal Palace FC (CPFC) against UEFA, Nottingham Forest FC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) concerning a decision by UEFA to remove CPFC from the UEFA Europa League 2025/2026 due to a breach of UEFA multi club ownership regulations. As a result, CPFC will be admitted to compete in the UEFA Conference League 2025/2026," a CAS statement read in August.
AdvertisementForest capitalised to take Palace's Europa League place
Forest, who finished seventh in the Premier League last season, were therefore handed Palace's Europa League spot. And Palace fans believe that Forest owner Marinakis is responsible for for their relegation to the Conference League.
Forest faced Palace at Selhurst Park in August as the pair played out a 1-1 draw after Callum Hudson-Odoi cancelled out Ismaila Sarr's first half opener for the home side. The game, though, was overshadowed by a banner unfurled by the Palace 'ultras' in the Holmesdale Stand that read: "Mr Marinakis is not involved in blackmail, match-fixing, drug trafficking or corruption."
The banner itself also included a caricature version of Marinakis holding a gun to the head of Morgan Gibbs-White. Gibbs-White saw a move to Tottenham fall through over the summer after Spurs had triggered the midfielder's release clause. The East Midlands side complained to the Premier League about the transfer, while Gibbs-White signed a new deal with Forest following conversations with Marinakis.
Getty Images SportFA charge Palace for banner
Forest and owner Marinakis were furious as they felt the banner was inflammatory and xenophobic, and were angered at Palace, who they feel should have done more to ensure their fans weren't allowed to bring the banner into the stadium. The FA launched an investigation after the game and the Eagles have since been charged.
"Crystal Palace has been charged with misconduct in relation to its Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest on Sunday, August 24," a statement by the FA read.
"It’s alleged that the club failed to ensure its spectators and/or supporters (and anyone purporting to be supporters or followers) didn’t behave in an improper, offensive, abusive, insulting and/or provocative way during the fixture."
Palace now have until next Tuesday to respond having received a six-figure fine.
Both sides in European action this week
Both Forest and Palace are in European action on Thursday night as they look to build upon contrasting results in their most recent round of Europa League and Conference League fixtures, respectively.
Forest face Austrian side Sturm Graz on the back of their 2-0 win over FC Porto last week in what was Sean Dyche's first game in charge following his City Ground appointment. Dyche's side then face Leeds ahead of the November international break with the 54-year-old looking to secure his first league win as Forest boss having followed up a 2-0 loss to Bournemouth with a 2-2 draw with Manchester United last weekend.
Palace, meanwhile, host Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in a bid to quickly move on from their surprise 1-0 home loss to AEK Larnaca before their A23 showdown with rivals Brighton on Sunday.