Four Premier League clubs handed devastating blow after Crystal Palace win FA Cup final

Four Premier League clubs have been handed a major blow after Crystal Palace won the 2025 FA Cup final.

Palace defeated Manchester City 1-0 at Wembley, with Eberechi Eze scoring the only goal of the game in the first half.

Goalkeeper Dean Henderson saved a penalty from City's Omar Marmoush, while Pep Guardiola's side spurned a series of chances to draw level.

But Palace were fully deserving of their first-ever major trophy, with their cutting edge in front of goal contrasting that of their opponents at Wembley.

The victory qualifies Oliver Glasner's side for European football next season, with Palace entering the Europa League.

Your FA Cup winners 🏆#FACup pic.twitter.com/fXtDKBfEik

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) May 17, 2025

That will make them the second team to qualify for the competition, with the team who finish sixth in the Premier League also ensuring their spot.

Had City won the FA Cup and finished in the top five places, the Europa League spot would have been passed down to the team who finishes seventh in the Premier League.

In turn, the eighth-placed team would taken the sole Conference League spot.

Chelsea can also qualify for the Europa League via winning the Conference League, but in that event their qualification place would not be passed down if they then finish in the top five of the Premier League.

But Palace's win means the seventh-placed team will qualify for the Conference League instead.

That means hopes that Brentford, Brighton, Bournemouth and Fulham - who can all mathematically finish eighth - of qualifying for Europe is now over, except for one specific scenario.

The Premier League have since clarified that the eighth-placed team can still secure Conference League football, but only if Chelsea win it and then finish seventh.

Brentford and Bournemouth have never played in Europe, while Brighton played in the Europa League last season.

Fulham, meanwhile, reached the final of the Europa League in 2010, losing to Atletico Madrid. They qualified for the following season's competition through the now-defunct Fair Play Table rule, but failed to make it out of their group.