Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis files defamation claim against Crystal Palace

Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is suing their Premier League rivals Crystal Palace for defamation.

Court filings showed the claim was filed at the High Court in London on Monday against both Palace and ‘persons unknown’.

The legal action extends the mood of tension between the two clubs, which was stirred up again in August last year when fans of the south London club displayed a banner in Selhurst Park’s Lower Holmesdale Road end which included an image of Marinakis.

Sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed that the legal action relates to the banner.

In November last year, the Football Association charged Palace with misconduct relating to the banner. Palace contested the charge and put forward a due diligence defence, arguing that it had taken all steps that could reasonably be taken to ensure the banner was not displayed.

However, Palace were fined £50,000 in February after an independent regulatory commission found the club had breached Rule E21 of FA rules by failing “to ensure its spectators and/or supporters…didn’t behave in an improper, offensive, abusive, insulting and/or provocative” manner.

The Athletic has contacted Palace for comment.

There could be a tense atmosphere when Forest visit Selhurst Park on October 10 for a Premier League fixture.

The bad blood comes against the backdrop of Forest securing a place in last season’s Europa League at Palace’s expense, with Palace having been demoted into the Conference League after being found to have breached rules on multi-club ownership.

Forest had written to UEFA to ask for clarity over the situation and Palace’s ownership structure ultimately saw them removed from the competition, although they subsequently won the Conference League, beating Rayo Vallecano 1-0 in the final, which secured them a place in the Europa League competition in the upcoming campaign.

Forest appointed Oliver Glasner — the manager who had led Palace to success in the FA Cup, the Community Shield and the Conference League over the last two years — when he became a free agent at the end of his contract this summer.

No hearing dates have yet been set for the legal action.