Since 1964, Palace have played mostly in the top two divisions of English football. The club enjoyed a successful period in the top division in the late 1980s and early 1990s, challenging for the English League title in the 1990โ91 season. They finished the league in third place, their highest league position to date.
Due to the partial UEFA ban imposed on English clubs due to the Heysel Disaster, they could not take part in the European cups in the following season. During this period, the club became one of the founding members of the newly established Premier League. Palace competed in the FA Cup final twice, in 1990 and 2016, and lost to Manchester United in both finals. The club also won the second tier twice and also made the promotion play-offs a record four times.
In 1973, Palace changed their traditional jersey colors from claret and blue to their current colors of red and blue. Palace have a rivalry with Brighton & Hove Albion and matches played between them are called M23 derbies. It also competes with South London clubs Millwall and Charlton Athletic.
The name of the Crystal Palace club comes from the name of a glass palace built for exhibition in London in 1851.
History
Crystal Palace Football Club, originally nicknamed "The Glaziers", was founded on 10 September 1905 under the guidance of Aston Villa assistant secretary Edmund Goodman. The club applied to enter the Football League, like another newly formed London club, Chelsea. However, it was the Chelsea team that was accepted into the league, and Palace competed in the Southern League Second Division in the 1905-06 season.
The club was promoted to the First Division as champions in its inaugural season. Palace also played in the United Counties League in midweek. The club played its first match in this organization, defeating New Brompton team 3-0 away.
Palace remained in the Southern League until 1914. In the 1907 FA Cup first round match, they won 1-0 against their rival Newcastle United, who competed in the First Division, the highest level of English football, and made a big surprise by eliminating their opponent from the cup. Due to the outbreak of World War I, Crystal Palace were forced to move to Herne Hill Velodrome, home of Norwood FC.
Three years later the club moved back to the Nest due to the closure of Croydon Common FC. Palace joined the Third Division in the 1920โ21 season, but were promoted to the Second Division after finishing as champions. The club won the London Challenge Cup three times during this period, in 1913, 1914 and 1921. In 1924, Palace moved to Selhurst Park, which it continues to use today and hosts home matches.
The opening match at Selhurst Park was against Sheffield Wednesday. Palace lost 0-1 in front of 25,000 fans. The team finished the league in twenty-first place and was relegated to the Third Division South. II. Before World War II, they struggled to get promoted to the next league. During this period, the team pushed for the top positions and finished the league in second place three times.
During the war years, the Football League was suspended and the club won the Wartime League twice as well as the South Regional League and South 'D' League competitions. After the war, the club performed worse in the league than before. The club, whose highest position was seventh, had to resort to re-election three times.
The club remained in Division Three South until 1957โ58. In the restructured league, clubs in the bottom half of the table were merged with those in the bottom half of Division Three North, creating a new league called the Fourth Division. Palace, on the other hand, found themselves at the bottom tier of English football as they finished the league in fourteenth place.
The new president of Palace, Arthur Wait, who stayed here for a short time, appointed Arthur Rowe as the head of the team. The team finished the 1960-61 season in second place and was promoted to the next league. Palace also achieved another success in 1962, when they played a friendly match against the great Real Madrid team of that period.
This match was the first football match played by the Spanish team in London. Later, towards the end of 1962, Rowe resigned due to health problems, but the league promotion he won with the team was a turning point in the club's history. Dick Graham and later Bert Head guided the club to successive promotions in 1963-64 and 1968-69, taking the club out of the Second Division and into the First Division.
Palace competed in the top division from 1969 to 1973. The club was relegated repeatedly under the management of Malcolm Allison and found itself in the Third Division in the 1974โ75 season. Under Allison's management, the club was nicknamed "The Eagles" and they managed to eliminate Leeds and Chelsea in the 1975โ76 FA Cup, where they reached the semi-finals.
Allison was sacked at the end of the 1975โ76 season and replaced by Terry Venables. Palace were promoted back to the top division by finishing third in 1976-77 and as Division Two champions in 1978-79. Crystal Palace managed only six wins in the league in the 1980-81 season and was relegated to the lower league, finishing last in the twenty-two team points table.
On 4 June 1984, former Manchester United player Steve Coppell, who retired due to injury, was appointed manager and under his management Palace returned to the First Division in the 1988โ89 season via the play-offs. Palace reached the 1990 FA Cup final, drawing 3-3 with Manchester United in the first leg but losing the replay 1-0.
Following the success of the previous season, the club achieved their highest league position in 1990โ91, where they finished in third place. Palace, which had the right to participate in European cups, could not use this right due to the partial ban imposed by UEFA on English clubs due to the Heysel Disaster. He also won the Full Members Cup event played at Wembley.
Palace defeated Everton in the final with a score of 4-1 (after extra time). In the following season, the team's striker Ian Wright left the club and was transferred to Arsenal. While Palace finished tenth in the league, they became one of the founding teams of the FA Premier League in the 1992-93 season.
The club sold Mark Bright to Sheffield Wednesday but failed to field properly and struggled to pick up points regularly throughout the season. However, the club was able to collect a total of 49 points at the end of the season, which remains the highest point collected by a team relegated from the Premier League. Deputy Alan Smith was appointed to replace Steve Coppell, who resigned.
In the first season, the club won the First Division title and made a return to the Premier League. Palace faced Manchester United at Selhurst Park on 25 January 1995, in which Eric Cantona was sent off after receiving a red card. Angered by Palace fan Matthew Simmons, Cantona responded with a flying kick to the fan. Cantona was sentenced to two weeks in prison, but that sentence was commuted to 120 hours of community service on appeal.
Simmons was banned from watching the match at Selhurst Park, and was found guilty of two offenses for threatening Cantona. Chris Armstrong was further monitored in March after he was penalized by the federation for failing a drug test. Alan Smith was instrumental in helping the club reach the FA Cup and League Cup semi-finals.
However, his performance in the league was inconsistent. Palace finished fourth from bottom in the 22-team league and were relegated once again.
Smith left the club and Steve Coppell returned as manager in the summer of 1995. Under the first team coaching of Ray Lewington and finally the management of Dave Bassett, Palace reached the play-offs. Palace lost the 1996 play-off final in dramatic fashion. Steve Claridge scored the goal that made the score 2-1 in favor of Leicester City in the last minutes of the match.
The following season, in early 1997, Coppell was appointed manager after Dave Bassett left to take the manager job at Nottingham Forest. The club defeated Sheffield United in the final played at Wembley, reaching a happy ending in the play-offs for the second time and being promoted back to the Premier League.
This season in the Premier League was no more successful than the previous two seasons. The club returned to the First Division in the 1998-99 season as an elevator team. The club competed in the UEFA Intertoto Cup organized in the summer. Palace went into administration in 1999 after owner Mark Goldberg was unable to continue his financial support of the club.
The club went out of administration under Simon Jordan's ownership. Steve Coppell left the club and was replaced by Alan Smith for the second time. The club was almost relegated in Jordan's first season in 2000-01. Smith was relieved of his duties in April and replaced by Steve Kember. Kember managed to get two important wins that would keep Palace relegated.
In the last match of the season, Palace won 1-0 against Stockport County with a goal scored by Dougie Freedman in the 87th minute of the match. Steve Bruce was appointed head of the team in the 2001-02 season. Palace started the season well and gave hope for promotion. However, coach Bruce wanted to leave the team after four months when he signed with Birmingham City.
With a special leave called 'Gardening leave', Bruce was transferred to Birmingham and was ironically replaced by Birmingham's manager Trevor Francis.
Palace spent two seasons under Francis' management, finishing mid-table in the league, and Francis subsequently resigned. He was replaced by Steve Kember. Kember guided Palace to victory in their opening three games of the 2003โ04 First Division campaign. He guided Palace to the top of the table, but was sacked in November after the team fell into the relegation zone.
Iain Dowie was appointed manager and led the club to the play-offs. He succeeded in promoting Palace to the next league with the 1-0 victory against West Ham, whom they met in the play-offs. However, Palace, which could not hold on to the Premier League, drew a last-minute away goal against local rivals Charlton Athletic in the last match of the season and was relegated.
Following this decline, Simon Jordan was unable to put the club on solid financial footing over the next few years and in January 2010 the club fell into administration due to debts. Later, the Eagles, who lost ten points in the English Football League, had to sell players such as Victor Moses and Josรฉ Fonte. Manager Neil Warnock resigned at the beginning of 2010.
Peter Taylor, who was the coach in the 2006-2007 season, was appointed as the head of the team. Paul Hart took over the team as interim coach in the last weeks of the season. In the last match of the season, Palace faced Sheffield Wednesday in the EFL Championship to stay relegated and drew 2-2. With this result, Sheffield Wednesday were relegated.
Due to the financial difficulties of the club, a consortium consisting of several wealthy fans named "CPFC Consortium" successfully purchased the club in 2010. Consortium members consisting of Steve Parish, Stephen Browett, Jeremy Hosking and Martin Long each held a 25% stake in the club. Additionally, the consortium, together with the club, acquired ownership of the stadium where the team plays its home matches.
The consortium quickly appointed George Burley as the team's coach. However, the club made a poor start to the season and was at the bottom of the points table until December. After a 3โ0 defeat against Millwall on 1 January 2011, Burley was sacked and his assistant Dougie Freedman was appointed interim manager. Freedman continued in his role full-time as of January 11, 2011.
Palace climbed the table and avoided relegation with one game remaining in the season, with a 1-1 draw against Hull City on 30 April. Freedman left Palace after a year and a half on 23 October 2012 to take up the position of manager of Bolton Wanderers.
Ian Holloway became the club's new manager in November 2012. Under his management, Palace returned to the Premier League after an eight-year absence by beating Watford 1โ0 in the Championship Play-off Final at the new Wembley, but Holloway resigned from his post in October 2013. The careers of Tony Pulis and Neil Warnock, who were subsequently appointed, did not last long at the club, and then in January 2015, former Palace player Alan Pardew became the new coach of the club.
Under Pardew's management, Palace faced Manchester United in the 2016 FA Cup final and lost 2-1 at the end of extra time. Palace thus competed in an FA Cup final for the first time in 26 years. In December 2016, Pardew was sacked and replaced by Sam Allardyce. Allardyce managed to keep the team in the Premier League but resigned unexpectedly at the end of the season.
On 26 June 2017, Palace appointed former Dutch national football player Frank de Boer as the manager of the team. Frank de Boer became Palace's first foreign manager but was sacked after just 77 days after losing in the first four league games of the 2017-18 season. Roy Hodgson was appointed as his replacement the next day.
Crystal Palace, which parted ways with Roy Hodgson, announced that its new coach is Oliver Glasner on February 19, 2024. Experienced coach signed a two-year contract.
Colors and coat of arms
When Crystal Palace was founded in 1905, they approached Aston Villa, who were considered one of the country's major clubs at the time, for advice. Villa helped the club in a number of ways. He donated jerseys to them. After all, Palace's colors were originally set to be claret and blue shirts with white shorts. The socks were close to burgundy color. They used these colors fairly consistently until 1938.
Jersey manufacturers and sponsors
As of 2018, Crystal Palace's jersey is manufactured by Puma. Previous manufacturers respectively; Umbro (1975-77), Admiral (1977-80, 1987-88, 2003-04), Adidas (1980-83, 1996-99), Hummel (1984-87), Bukta (1988-92), Ribero (1992-94) Nutmeg (1994-96), TFG Sports (1999-2001) Le Coq Sportif (2001-03), Diadora (2004-07), Errea (2007-09), Nike (2009-12), Avec (2012-14), Macron (2014-18).
The club's shirt sponsor is currently ManBetX. The club's previous jersey sponsors are as follows; Red Rose (1983-84), Top Score (1985-86), AVR (1986-87), Andrew Copeland (1987-88), Fly Virgin (1988-91), Tulip Computers (1991-93), TDK (1993-99), Churchill Insurance (2000-06), GAC Logistics (2006-14), Neteller (2014-15) and Mansion.com (2015-17)
Stadium
In 1905, the Crystal Palace Company, which owned the FA Cup Final venue in the Crystal Palace grounds, wanted a club to play there and tap into the area's crowded potential. They formed a new club, Crystal Palace FC, to play at the stadium. When World War I began the Palace and stadium were captured by the armed forces and in 1915 the club was forced to move by the Admiral.
They moved temporarily to Herne Hill Velodrome. Although other clubs offered the use of their grounds to Palace, the club felt it was best to stay as close to natural gathering areas as possible. Croydon Common F.C. went into liquidation in 1917, the club taking over their former stadium at the Nest, but in 1919 they began purchasing land on which they built their current home, Selhurst Park.
Famous stadium architect Archibald Leitch took part in preparing the plans and the club had the stadium ready for the 1924-25 season. The Arthur Wait stand remained relatively unchanged, with only floodlights installed when it was built, and maintenance and updating until 1969. The main stand was converted to all-seater in 1979 and in the 1980s work was carried out to develop the Whitehorse Lane End to accommodate a Sainsbury's supermarket, club offices and a club store.
The Arthur Wait stand was converted into a fully seated stadium in 1990. In 1994 Holmesdale Terrace was redeveloped and a two-storey grandstand was built. Selhurst's highest attendance record was recorded in 1979, with an official total of 51,482. Due to the implementation of the Taylor Report, after all the reconstruction and security requirements made to the stadium, the current spectator capacity dropped to 26,309.
Proposals were made for the club to move to the Crystal Palace National Sports Center again in 2010, but after the club gained promotion to the Premier League in 2013, they focused on increasing the existing stadium to a capacity of 40,000 spectators. Revised plans for a 13,500-seat main stand (taking the overall stadium capacity to 34,000) were approved at a Croydon Council meeting on 19 April 2018.
A panorama of Selhurst Park from Upper Holmesdale, showing from left to right the Main Stand, Whitehorse Lane End and the Arthur Wait standGood luck
- UEFA Conference League โ Champion โ 2025-26
- Old Division Two / Division One โ Champion โ 1978-79, 1993-94
- Old Division Two / Division One โ Second โ 1968-69
- Old Division Two / Division One โ Play-off winner โ 1988-89, 1996-97, 2003-04
- Football League Third Division South โ Champion โ 1920-21
- Football League Third Division South โ Second โ 1928-29, 1930-31, 1938-39
- Old Division Three โ Second โ 1963-64
- Old Division Three โ 3rd Promotion team โ 1976-77
- Old Division Four โ Second โ 1960-61
- FA Cup โ Champion โ 2024-25
- FA Cup โ Runners-up โ 1989-90
- FA Cup โ Semi-finalist โ 1975-76, 1994-95
- EFL Cup โ Semi-finalist โ 1993, 1995, 2001
- Full Members Cup โ Champion โ 1991
- FA Community Shield โ Champion โ 2025
European Matches
- 1998 โ UEFA Intertoto Cup โ 3rd Round โ Samsunspor โ 0-2 โ 0-2 โ 0-4
- 2025-26 โ UEFA Conference League โ Play-off โ Fredrikstad FK
Staff
- As of September 30, 2023
Crystal Palace Women
Crystal Palace Women's team is the women's football club affiliated with Crystal Palace, founded in 1992. The club, managed by Dean Davenport, competes in the FA Women's Premier League South, the third tier of English women's football. It plays its home matches at Hayes Lane in London.
