How Crystal Palace Dodged Disaster in 2010—Administration and Relegation

A Premier League fixture for 12 consecutive seasons, Crystal Palace have quietly established themselves as one of the top flight’s most consistent survivors.

They’ve only finished in the top half twice in that time —10th in both 2015/16 and 2023/24—but stability has helped them grow as a club.

Yet rewind just over 15 years, and that stability looked like a distant dream. In 2010, Palace were not just fighting against the possibility of relegation; they were fighting for their very existence. Saddled with debt, plunged into administration, and days away from liquidation, it looked like this historic 105-year-old club was teetering on the edge of oblivion.

What followed was nothing short of remarkable. A combination of grit, togetherness, and timely intervention from fans, players, and local businessmen saved them.

Crystal Palace did not just escape; they came face-to-face with death and won.

2009/10 season

Crystal Palace entered administration on January 26, 2010. The warning signs had been flashing for a long time before this. Owner Simon Jordan took control of the club in 2000 and invested heavily with the ambition of reaching the Premier League.

Promotion in the 2003/04 season saw Jordan satisfied, but it would not be a long stay as they got relegated just a season later.

With the debt adding up from a bloated wage bill, alarm bells should have been ringing. Palace were a Championship club operating with Premier League expenses—and the financial gap was closing fast.

It would not be long until Palace were hit with a 10-point deduction.

The financial position became untenable. The debt had mounted up and Palace owed £30 million. This included significant debts to HMRC, which landed them the points deduction.

Palace’s season was flipped on its head. From chasing the play-offs to clinging to survival, just four points above the drop.

And it would only get worse from there. Victor Moses—a star player and product of Palace's youth academy—would be sold for £2.6 million.

Like his biblical namesake, Moses would lead an exodus—but this time from Selhurst Park. A total of 10 players would be sold or loaned out as the club scrambled to trim the wage bill and raise vital funds, sacrificing talent to stave off collapse.

Manager Neil Warnock would be the next to go. After four games without a win, Palace sat just two points above the drop. They were sinking fast, and for a moment, it felt as though the club might simply give in to the tide. Warnock, by his own admission, "no longer had the heart for the fight". Paul Hart (funnily enough) replaced him.

Final day

Without the 10-point deduction, Palace would have been sitting in 13th place with no worry of relegation. But due to their financial issues, the threat of relegation loomed large.

On the final game of the 2009/10 season, Palace played Sheffield Wednesday away from home. Like something out of a film, Wednesday sat two points behind Palace in 22nd place.

The stakes couldn’t have been higher.

For Palace, a draw would mean survival. But a loss? That would drag them into the relegation zone

A Hollywood script with no second rewrite for the losers. One game, all or nothing.

The match would be a brutal affair, with 28 fouls committed by the two teams. Wednesday would dominate on the ball, but as the clock hit the 86th minute, Palace were 2-1 up.

Then disaster struck.

Darren Purse bundled the ball in from close range to make it 2–2 — and suddenly, the mood shifted. With three minutes and additional time still to play, Palace were clinging to their Championship status by the thinnest of threads.

The next eight minutes were a blur of blocks, saves, and Palace clinging on for dear life.

Then, as if guided by some higher power, referee Mike Dean blew his whistle, condemning Wednesday and sparing Palace.

On this day 13 years ago, Crystal Palace Football Club effectively could have died.

Without the heroes of 2010, we would never have had 11 consecutive years of Premier League football.

There will never be a Palace game like this again.

#CPFC pic.twitter.com/fNCWKlSNbc

— CPFC HQ (@CPFCHQ) May 2, 2023

Palace's safety had been confirmed, but the club's existence would remain on the brink.

CPFC 2010

Despite securing their place in the 2010/11 Championship season, Palace remained perilously close to liquidation. Administrator Brendan Guilfoyle warned the club and fans that they had just days to find a new owner.

That’s when CPFC 2010 stepped in. A consortium of four wealthy Palace fans—Steve Parish, Martin Long, Stephen Browett, and Jeremy Hosking—placed an offer to buy the club. But a subsidiary of Lloyd’s Bank, which owned Selhurst Park, Palace’s stadium, was playing hardball.

On June 1, 2010, hundreds of Palace fans marched to Lloyds’ London HQ, chanting and pleading for the bank to make a deal. In a rare example of fan power in action, Lloyd's relented and allowed the club to be sold.

Places had survived not once, but now twice.

From the brink to the Premier League

The year 2010 was both harrowing and transformative for Palace and their fans.

In the 15 years since, Palace have rebuilt sensibly and the club has been taken to new heights under the guidance of owner Steve Parish.

Their rebuild culminated in the 2024/25 season when the London club lifted their first major silverware—the FA Cup—after a stunning 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the final.

No Crystal Palace fans, you weren't dreaming, we did actually win the FA Cup pic.twitter.com/Afa3P2D7At

— Luke Weaser-Seychell 🏆 (@Luke_Seychell) May 18, 2025

Today, Crystal Palace are a stable Premier League club. They’ve flirted with the drop but never truly panicked.

The memory of 2010 lives on, but it only fuels the club.

With the Confrence League to look forward to—after Palace were controversially knocked out of the Europa League—there is no telling what Palace could achieve next season.