New York Jets Owner Woody Johnson is a self-declared Chelsea FC supporter, but he recently acquired a new favorite club in London- Crystal Palace FC. He has 254 million reasons (or 190 million if you’re reading this in the United Kingdom). Johnson reached agreement on a £190 million deal ($254m) that now gives him a 43% stake in Crystal Palace.
While we’ve all known this was going to happen for a very long time, the South London club confirmed this in a statement today.
We are pleased to confirm that Woody Johnson’s purchase of Eagle Football’s shareholding in the club has now been completed.#CPFC
— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) July 24, 2025
“I am honoured and privileged to be joining the ownership group of Crystal Palace Football Club,” reads the statement attributed to Johnson released on Thursday.
“It is an organisation with a proud history, tradition, and deep roots in English football in South London, which I came to admire during my time as U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom.
“Eagles fans have demonstrated extraordinary loyalty, passion, and unwavering dedication and I am excited to meet and get to know them.”
For the sake of Palace supporters, hopefully Woody Johnson will run his English football club better than he runs his American football club. The NY Jets are among the worst performing (at least on the field) franchises in not just the NFL, but all of American sports.
Jets jokes abound in all facets of American life where people pay attention to sports.
Maybe he’ll do a much better job with Crystal Palace FC?
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter