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Every single Premier League team’s multi-club ties revealed amid twist in Crystal Palace’s UEFA row
Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest’s multi-club connections are the tip of the iceberg in the Premier League, where 16 teams have ownership links to one or more other clubs, TBR Football can reveal.
FA Cup winners Crystal Palace are in discussions with UEFA, who are considering how the 43 per cent stake owned by John Textor in the South London club squares with their conflict of interest rules.
Through his Eagle Football holdings company, Textor also owns Ligue 1 side Lyon. Like Palace, Lyon are pencilled in to play in the Europa League in 2025-26.
But because Palace did not demonstrate their compliance with UEFA’s rules on competition integrity and multi-club ownership by 1 March, they now are at risk of being kicked out of the Europa League. Why them and not Lyon? Because Textor’s French club finished higher in their domestic league.
What’s more, Palace would ordinarily be demoted to the Conference League, with Nottingham Forest taking their place in the Europa. However, because another of Palace’s shareholders, sports investment mogul David Blitzer, owns a majority stake in Brondby, who qualified for the Conference League by finishing 3rd in the Danish Superliga, Palace now face the prospect of no European football whatsoever.
In that eventuality, it appears that rivals Brighton – who, as we will discuss later, have their own multi-club links – will be promoted to the Conference League at Palace’s expense.
To resolve the matter, Palace have two options. Textor can either sell his shares, which he has already long been trying to do, or demonstrate compliance with with UEFA’s Article 5 on multi-club ownership.
In the last 24 hours, there have been two significant developments. Textor is reportedly ready to sell his shares in Palace for £173m, with several consortia already at the table. Plus, Steve Parish and the rest of the club hierarchy are said to be confident that they will indeed satisfy Article 5 in any case.
Under UEFA Article 5, multi-club ownership itself is not outlawed but clubs with shared ownerships cannot compete in the same competition unless they prove that they have no “decisive influence in the decision-making” of at least one of the clubs.
Article 5 in its entirety is more nebulous and lists several criteria relating to voting rights, shares held and club administration, but the “decisive influence” factor appears to be key in the case of Textor and Crystal Palace.
No individual or legal entity may have control or influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA club competition, such control or influence being defined in this context as… being able to exercise by any means a decisive influence in the decision-making of the club.
Extract from Article 5, Regulations of the UEFA Champions League
We will discuss the latest with Palace and Forest’s arguments to UEFA later in this article. It’s a fluid situation and football finance experts canvassed by TBR Football have expressed different views about how the regulatory drama will ultimately play out.
But first, in an exclusive piece of research, TBR Football will analyse the multi-club links of every Premier League club.
Multi-club ownership has almost totally engulfed the Premier League
Tottenham, Fulham, Burnley and Wolves – if you don’t see your club’s name, your team has ties to another club somewhere throughout the world.
The term ‘multi-club’ is typically used to refer to a group that holds minority or majority stakes within two or more football clubs.
Multi-club organisations like Manchester City’s City Football Group and the Red Bull group use their networks to create player development pathways, share resources, pool costs, develop commercial synergies and navigate regulatory constraints.
However, other multi-club networks are more diffuse and have different aims. They might not even define themselves as a multi-club organisation at all.
For example, some Premier League clubs have minority shareholders – often backed by private equity – who hold stakes in other clubs worldwide. Sometimes there is cooperation between the clubs in this model, sometimes it’s more of a passive investment model.
On top of that, there are more complex layered investments. Investor A might own a 20 per cent stake in Club X and a five per cent in Holdings Company B, who in turn own 100 per cent of Club Y. Yes, there are degrees of separation and the link might not be immediately clear, but it exists all the same.
For the purposes of this piece, we’ll use the term ‘multi-club’ to refer to any equity link, direct or indirect, between two or more clubs.
Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest’s multi-club ties: Lyon, RWD Molenbeek, Botafogo, Olympiacos and Rio Ave
Crystal Palace co-owner Textor’s Eagle Football Group owns majority stakes in three clubs – Ligue outfit Lyon, the Belgian Pro League’s RWD Molenbeek, and reigning Brazilian champions Botafogo.
While not a multi-club link, the financial services titan Ares Management is also a major lender to Eagle Football and has installed two of its partners in Mark Affolter and Jim Miller onto the company’s board. Ares are also a major lender to Chelsea and own a 34 per cent stake in Atletico Madrid. Ares also submitted a proposal to underwrite takeover bids for Manchester United in 2023.
Textor’s fellow Palace shareholder Blitzer meanwhile is one of the most active investors in the multi-club space. He co-owns Bundesliga side FC Augsburg, though he is reportedly keen to sell that stake. Recently, he also sold his controlling stake in the MLS’s Real Salt Lake, but he remains a minority shareholder.
Beyond that, his Global Football Holdings also holds interests in:
- Brondby (Danish Superliga)
- Estoril Praia (Portuguese Primeira Liga)
- SK Beveren (Belgian Challenger Pro League)
- AD Alcorcon (Spanish Primera Federacion)
- ADO Den Haag (Dutch Eerste Divisie)
Nottingham Forest meanwhile are not the only asset in the portfolio of the character in the UEFA multi-club drama, Evangelos Marinakis.
The Greek shipping magnate is the president and majority shareholder of Olympiacos, as well as owning Portuguese top-flight side Rio Ave.
Arsenal – Stan Kroenke
As well as his club in North London, Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke is the sole shareholder in MLS franchise Colorado Rapids through his Kroenke Sports & Entertainment investment vehicle.
Kroenke has been accused of being an absentee landlord at the Rapids. Many fans aren’t happy with a perceived lack of investment in infrastructure and the squad.
The relationship between the Rapids and Arsenal isn’t particularly integrated. The two sides met in a friendly match in 2019 during the Gunners’ tour of the United States that summer but are not believed to share resources.
Incidentally, Mikel Arteta has hinted that he would like Arsenal to set up a multi-club model.
Aston Villa – Wes Edens, Nassef Sawiris, Atairos
Like Forest, Aston Villa have had their own regulatory drama with UEFA. Fortunately for them, there was a happy ending.
Through their V Sports holdings company, Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris own a 29 per cent stake in the Portuguese Primeira Liga’s Vitoria de Guimaraes. V Sports reduced their stake in Vitoria in order for the two sides to compete in the Europa League in 2023-24.
V Sports also own a 25 per cent stake in Spanish third-tier side Real Union who, incidentally, are majority-owned by the family of Villa boss Unai Emery. The company has been linked with acquiring an MLS expansion franchise in Vegas too, though that deal will be some time away, if indeed it ever materialises.
As an aside, Atairos – the London-based private equity firm that owns just over 30 per cent of Villa – are financially backed by Comcast, who in turn are the owners of Premier League media rightsholder Sky Sports.
Bournemouth – Bill Foley
Bill Foley, the 80-year-old Texan billionaire, has incorporated his ownership of Bournemouth into Black Knight Football Club.
As well as the Cherries, Black Knight owns majority stakes in New Zealand-based Australian A-League side Auckland FC, French Ligue 1 outfit Lorient and, in their most recent acquisition, Portuguese top-flight side Moreirense.
Black Knight and Foley also own a minority stake in the Scottish Premiership’s Hibernian.
Brentford – Matthew Benham
Previously, Brentford’s 100 per cent owner Matthew Benham owned Danish side Midtjylland through his Best Intentions Analytics company. He sold his interests in the club in 2023.
Last month, however, Benham re-entered the multi-club racket with the takeover of Merida AD, a Spanish third-division side.
Brighton – Tony Bloom
In their own self-interest, Brighton will be hoping that the administrative controversy involving Palace and Forest ends in them nicking a spot in the Conference League.
In 2023, Brighton were cleared to play in the Conference League after owner Tony Bloom reduced his stake in Belgian outfit Union Saint-Gilloise. He now owns 25 per cent of the club, as well as a non-voting stake in Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.
Chelsea – Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital
From the minute they were through the door at Stamford Bridge, the Chelsea ownership group fronted by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital were frank about their multi-club aspirations.
BlueCo, the holding company that owns the club, bought Ligue 1 side Strasbourg in 2023 for around £65m.
Despite enduring a fractious relationship with fans of the Alsace-based club, BlueCo will view the acquisition as a successful investment.
Chelsea have routinely traded players with Strasbourg. In the last few days, Mamadou Sarr has become the latest player to make the move from France to West London.
Everton – The Friedkin Group
Everton’s takeover by Californian billionaire Dan Friedkin in December last year saw them enter a stable of three Friedkin Group-owned clubs.
Most notably, the investment firm own Italian giants AS Roma.
Their stewardship of the club has been mixed, delivering a first-ever European trophy in the form of the Conference League in 2023 but subsequently encountering FFP issues and incurring the wrath of fans after sacking club legend Daniel De Rossi.
The Friedkin Group have also been trying to break ground on a new stadium for Roma. Those plans have been knocked back several times.
The Friedkin Group also own AS Cannes. The location is appropriate given Friedkin’s links with the film industry. Earlier this month, former interim Everton CEO Colin Chong, who is now overseeing the Hill Dickinson Stadium, presented at a property conference in the Riviera town.
Leeds United – 49ers Enterprises, Red Bull
Premier League new boys Leeds United are owned by the 49ers Enterprises, the private investment arm of NFL franchise the San Francisco 49ers.
The 49ers are the latest group to enter the multi-club fraternity with their takeover of Rangers. They have also established a global football unit, which suggests further acquisitions could follow.
Should Leeds and Rangers qualify for the same European competition, the 49ers would likely have to enter into a blind trust arrangement. Given that the American owners have lofty ambitions for both clubs, this is a realistic scenario.
In 2024, Leeds became the first minority investment made by Red Bull’s global football division. The archetypical multi-club network, Red Bull own stakes in eight clubs worldwide.
Their most recent acquisition came in December 2024, when they acquired a minority stake in Paris FC as part of their takeover by Bernard Arnault, one of the world’s richest people and CEO of LVMH, the luxury goods conglomerate that owns Louis Vuitton and umpteen other designer brands.
Another interesting layer to the Leeds relationship is that Red Bull also sponsor several rival Premier League clubs.
Liverpool – Fenway Sports Group
The ownership structure of Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) is a fascinating case study in how layered investment creates indirect links between major European clubs.
One of FSG’s biggest shareholders is a private equity firm called RedBird Capital, who also own AC Milan.
Elsewhere in FSG’s ownership structure, five per cent shareholders Arctos own a 12.5 per cent stake in Champions League champions Paris Saint-Germain and an undisclosed minority stake in Italian Serie A side Atalanta.
Liverpool faced both PSG and Milan in their Champions League campaign in 2024-25, illustrating how UEFA does not believe this kind of layered investment meets their conflict of interest threshold.
Manchester City – Abu Dhabi Investment Group
When Ferran Soriano became CEO of Manchester City in 2013, he had a vision to create a football multinational.
12 years later, City Football Group is probably the world’s most sprawling multi-club network, with majority stakes in eight clubs and minority interests in eight more, as well as the unique honour of a club on every continent besides Africa.
Last season, City were forced to put one of their subsidiary clubs, Girona, into a blind trust to bypass UEFA’s conflict of interest rules when the La Liga side unexpectedly qualified for the Champions League.
La Liga president Javier Tebas has been one of the most vocal critics of City Football Group.
As well as the state-backed investment from Abu Dhabi, City Football Group sold a significant minority stake to private equity firm Silver Lake, who now own just less than 20 per cent of the multi-club operation.
Manchester United – Sir Jim Ratcliffe
Like City, Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has encountered issues with UEFA’s dual ownership rules and his clubs’ participation in European competition.
Last season, Ratcliffe placed Ligue 1 side OGC Nice into a blind trust as they qualified for the Europa League. Incidentally, Nice went on to enjoy their best season on the pitch since they were bought by Ratcliffe’s Ineos in 2019. They finished 4th last season and will enter the Champions League in the qualifying rounds next term. The multinational chemicals firm is now looking to sell the club at a reported valuation of around £210m.
Ineos also own Lausanne Sport of the Swiss Super League. Back in March, Ratcliffe placed Lausanne Sport into a blind trust agreement in anticipation of them qualifying for Europe. In the end, they did make it to the Conference League, but there will be no conflict of interest concerns given Nice’s Champions League qualification and United’s failure to secure any kind of European football.
Newcastle United – the Saudi Public Investment Fund
The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) have vast interests in football at almost every conceivable level.
That extends to club ownership. They own Saudi Pro League sides Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal, and Al-Nassr. Several other Saudi sides are umbilically connected to Newcastle United’s owners too, even if it isn’t PIF themselves whose name is on the ownership contract.
PIF have also been linked with setting up a more integrated multi-club model with Newcastle as the mothership, with reported interest in various clubs in South America and Europe.
Sunderland – Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Juan Sartori
Sunderland are an interesting case when it comes to multi-club links.
Recently, co-owners Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Juan Sartori established Bia Sports Group, a company which markets itself as a sports investment holdings company who are predicting major acquisitions soon.
Independently, Louis-Dreyfus is believed to have inherited a small stake in Ligue side Marseille from his father, the late Robert Louis-Dreyfus.
And while not a multi-club link per se, Sartori is on the board of AS Monaco, the club owned by his father-in-law, Len Blavatnik. In the event that Sunderland and Monaco both qualified for the same European competition, that is a relationship that would need to be resolved.
West Ham – Daniel Kretinsky
Czech investor Daniel Kretinsky was once mooted as West Ham’s next outright owner but has since taken a back seat at the London Stadium. He owns around 27 per cent of the Irons.
Kretinsky is also a 40 per cent shareholder in Sparta Prague, his boyhood club.
The remaining shares in the 38-time Czech Republic champions are owned by J&T Credit Investments, an offshoot of the investment group where Kretinsky cut his teeth as a lawyer in the late 1990s but with which he is no longer formally affiliated.
Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest and UEFA: What happens next in battle for Europa League?
Forest have reportedly written to UEFA to express their reservations about Palace competing in the Europa League due to their links with Lyon.
There have been suggestions that the case could go all the way to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Another layer to the story is that Lyon are being monitored by UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body, the chamber which assesses compliance with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations. If Lyon are found to be in breach, it could result in them being booted out of the Europa League.
Textor has been looking to sell his shares in Palace for some time amid frustrations about a lack of influence at Selhurst Park. He has offered to stand down as a director of Palace too.
He granted a Saudi-US consortium exclusivity in talks to buy his 43 per cent stake back in March, but those talks did not reach a crescendo. Now, the leading prospective buyers appear to come from the world of US sport, with New York Jets owner Woody Johnson among the names linked.