16 years ago today: Administration, protests

Though Crystal Palace were ultimately saved by Steve Parish and the CPFC 2010 consortium, it was by no means easy, and survival likely wouldn’t have been achieved if it wasn’t for the efforts of the fans protesting outside Lloyds Bank and Selhurst Park.

The club had been placed into administration on 27th January 2010, which meant a 10-point deduction and a relegation battle for the rest of the season. Though the Eagles ensured safety with a 2-2 draw against Sheffield Wednesday in ‘Survival Sunday,’ events off the pitch a month later really made the difference.

On 31st May, 2010, it was announced that if a deal wasn’t struck within 24 hours, the club would be liquidated.

What happened next was unprecedented, as protestors took to Selhurst Park in an effort to raise awareness of the club’s fate.

This set off a chain of events which led to the protests continuing the following day, and fans' efforts being picked up by major media outlets. The protests predominantly occurred outside Lloyds Bank's headquarters in London, who effectively owned Selhurst Park.

The collective voice of hundreds of protesting fans did not fall on deaf ears. Their efforts prompted a response further talks with CPFC 2010, who managed to save the club at the last minute.

The protestors managed to have such a profound impact, all from one simple message on the CPFC BBS from Steve Parish.

“The note that I sent precipitated an incredible chain of events. The next day I woke up and there were 3,000 fans outside Lloyds Bank,” Parish explains in the first episode of When Eagles Dare, which is available to watch on Palace TV+.

“What Steve did and what the fans did by protesting was persuade them that they had to sell at a reasonable price to the owners of the club and it couldn’t be redeveloped,” now former co-Chair Stephen Browett added.

CPFC 2010 brought an end to the administration process by securing the club, the training ground and Selhurst Park with the help of the fans’ protests.

The collective efforts between the protesting fans and the consortium laid the groundwork for the future of the club. With the finances now under control and the stadium and training ground back in the hands of the owners, the rebuilding effort began in earnest.

Two seasons later, something spectacular was to occur.

Some 15 years after that, we were FA Cup winners.

Last week, we became European Champions.

How time flies.