Crystal Palace Conference League Triumph Fuels Mitchell’s Call To Do It All Over Again Next Season

Crystal Palace capped a rapid rise in European football as Jean-Philippe Mateta’s goal sealed the Conference League title against Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, securing a third major trophy in just over a year and completing Oliver Glasner’s reign with another piece of silverware.

The 1-0 victory delivered Palace’s first European trophy and followed their FA Cup and Community Shield triumphs under Glasner, who took charge of the club’s final match on Wednesday and leaves after guiding the Eagles from perennial outsiders to consistent contenders on several fronts.

Before Glasner arrived, winning in Europe appeared far from Crystal Palace’s expectations after 119 years without a major honour, yet the club have now lifted three trophies in quick succession and turned that long wait into one of the most condensed successful periods in their history.

Palace are only the third English side to win a major European trophy in their debut season in UEFA competition, joining West Ham’s 1964-65 Cup Winners’ Cup success and Newcastle United’s 1968-69 Fairs Cup run, underlining how quickly Glasner’s team adapted to the European stage.

The Conference League victory means Crystal Palace will enter the Europa League in the 2026-27 season, with the Eagles becoming the ninth Premier League club to qualify for European football that year, and returning to the competition they originally reached before being removed over multi-club ownership regulations.

English clubs now have three wins from the first five editions of the Conference League, and Crystal Palace’s result also extends an improving record against Spanish opposition, with English teams losing nine straight major European finals to Spanish clubs between 2006 and 2022, but now winning the last two.

Mateta’s decisive finish, reacting fastest after Adam Wharton’s effort was pushed into the penalty area, made Mateta the third French player to score for an English team in a European final, following Paul Pogba for Manchester United in 2017 and Olivier Giroud for Chelsea in 2019, both in the Europa League.

Crystal Palace Conference League win crowns Mateta’s turbulent season

The final goal completed a dramatic campaign for Mateta, whose proposed January move to AC Milan collapsed after a failed medical; Mateta responded by rebuilding form at Palace, earning a place in France’s World Cup squad and ending the season as the match-winner on the biggest night in the club’s European history.

The striker told TNT Sports: I feel fantastic! I feel fantastic! We did it! First time in Europe, and we did it! Now, I just want to celebrate, I just want to party. It's incredible, we gave everything. I told you about the intensity they would have, and I am tired right now. I gave everything. That's why we won today. I am always with the fans. They have supported me a lot as a player. They are always behind us. We did it for them, too.

Tyrick Mitchell reflected on the scale of Crystal Palace’s journey, speaking after a season that stretched to 60 matches, included difficult runs of form and defeats in this competition, yet finished with the same emotional high the squad felt after winning the FA Cup at Wembley.

Mitchell told TNT Sports: It's something you dream of, but you don't think it's reality. We've shown that it's reality, he told TNT Sports. I'm just proud of everyonepast and presentthat helped us get to this point. We played 60 games this season, so many of us aren't used to it. We had times when we weren't winning. We lost a couple of games in this competition, but it all meant that if we came here and won, we'd do it all over again! It's the same feeling as we had when we won the FA Cup. It's just pure delight, pure emotions. We're just happy we did it together.

With Glasner departing after delivering three trophies, Crystal Palace head into the 2026-27 Europa League campaign carrying new status in European football, strengthened by recent success, a growing record for English clubs in the Conference League and a squad that has already shown it can cope with demanding fixture lists.