Jets' Woody Johnson Spends $254M on Minority Stake of EPL Club Crystal Palace

New York Jets owner Woody Johnson has agreed to purchase a minority stake in the Premier League club Crystal Palace, the team announced Monday.

Johnson has agreed to buy a 43 percent stake for $254 million, according to ESPN's Mark Ogden.

The transaction is awaiting approval from the Premier League, a process that involves Johnson undergoing a test, according to Ogden.

Crystal Palace said in a statement that they "do not envisage any issues and look forward to welcoming Woody as a partner and director of the club."

The Athletic's Matt Woosnam reported that Johnson's testing "could be completed more quickly" given his 25 years of ownership experience with the Jets.

Johnson is buying the stake from U.S. businessman John Textor. Reuters reported that Textor bought his minority share in 2021 for $121.34 million.

Textor made a bid to take over Crystal Palace with a majority stake in August 2024, with the expectation he would sell his share if he did not succeed, per Woosnam.

His effort to buy out co-owners including Josh Harris, who also owns the Washington Commanders, and David Blitzer, who co-owns the New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers with Harris, was unsuccessful.

Johnson, who served as the United States' Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 2017 to 2021, is now set to succeed at expanding into the Premier League after his reported $2.6 billion bid to buy Chelsea in 2022 was unsuccessful.

The Jets owner purchased his NFL team in 2000 for $635 million. Forbes projected the Johnson family's net worth to be $16 billion as of February 2024.

Meanwhile, Crystal Palace will hope the sale will improve their chances of making the Europa League next season. Both Palace and the French club Lyon qualified for the league, raising UEFA's concerns about conflict of interest given Textor's investment stake in Lyon, per The Athletic's Oliver Kay.