New York Jets owner Woody Johnson has expressed an interest in acquiring a stake in 2025 FA Cup winners Crystal Palace, potentially expanding NFL interest in the Premier League.

Johnson’s offer was made to current Palace shareholder John Textor, according to BBC Sport, and could potentially help both Textor and the club out of a tricky situation regarding participation in European competition in 2025-26. As FA Cup winners, Palace have earned a spot in next season’s Europa League, but French club Lyon — in which Textor’s Eagle Football group has a majority stake — has also qualified for the same competition, sparking a breach of UEFA rules over multi-club ownership.

In short, no two (or more) clubs owned by the same group or individual may compete in the same competition — a complication that has already had implications for teams in the forthcoming FIFA Club World Cup — and Nottingham Forest, who narrowly missed out on European qualification after a surprising Premier League campaign, have already requested clarification on their rival’s participation from UEFA.

Palace have confirmed that Textor has repeatedly tried to offload his stake in the club, and Johnson’s interest in Eagle Football’s 43 percent shareholding could kill two birds with one stone. However, according to Telegraph Sport, the sometime Trump-appointed ambassador to the UK has bid less for the holding than two rival groups. In order to secure a swift resolution, Eagle Football — which also holds interests in Brazilian club Botafogo and Belgium’s RWD Molenbeek — could accept as little as £170m for the stake.

Should Johnson prove successful, he would join a select group of NFL team owners with interests in the Premier League, including the Glazer family (Manchester United), Shad Khan (Fulham) and Stan Kroenke (Arsenal). Interestingly, Washington Commanders front man Josh Harris also has an existing stake in Crystal Palace and was seen celebrating the club’s first major trophy win at Wembley following victory over Manchester City. Along with close ally David Blitzer, Harris would have a fast-track to acquiring Textor’s shares as he already has ownership clearance from the Premier League, but has not yet been mentioned amongst the potential buyers.

Any Johnson acquisition would be a case of ‘after the Lord Mayor’s Show’ with Palace having been crowned cup champions last month, but owning a club with recent silverware in the trophy cabinet would be a welcome change from life at the Jets.