Evangelos Marinakis Takes Legal Action Against Crystal Palace Over Controversial Banner

Evangelos Marinakis has launched legal action against Crystal Palace over a controversial fan banner that depicted the Nottingham Forest owner holding a gun to the head of midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White.

The defamation claim was filed in the High Court on Monday, with CPFC Limited named as one of two defendants. It marks a sharp escalation of a dispute that began in the stands at Selhurst Park nearly a year ago but has now moved into one of the country’s most serious legal arenas.

The banner appeared during a 1-1 Premier League draw between Palace and Forest at Selhurst Park last August. Visually provocative and legally loaded, it showed Marinakis pointing a gun at Gibbs-White’s head, alongside the words: “Mr Marinakis is not involved in blackmail, match-fixing, drug trafficking or corruption.”

The wording, dripping with irony, referenced long-circulating allegations around the Greek businessman’s wider interests. Marinakis has always and consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to such claims, and now he is seeking to have that denial backed by the courts.

The Football Association had already taken notice. In November 2025, the FA charged Crystal Palace with failing to ensure their supporters did not behave in an improper, offensive, abusive or provocative manner. The governing body did not single out the banner in its charge sheet, but its regulations are clear: clubs are responsible for preventing defamatory, political or offensive messaging inside stadiums.

That afternoon at Selhurst Park was already heavy with narrative. Gibbs-White, an England international and one of Forest’s key assets, had spent the summer under intense speculation. Tottenham Hotspur appeared to have activated a £60m release clause, and for a spell it looked as though Forest would lose their creative heartbeat.

Instead, he stayed. Gibbs-White signed a new contract and, in a pointed show of unity, later sat alongside Marinakis in an interview to explain his decision to remain at the club. The image of owner and player together contrasted sharply with the gun-to-the-head depiction that Palace fans had unfurled.

There was another twist in the relationship between the two clubs. Marinakis-owned Forest took Palace’s place in the Europa League last season, after the south London side were relegated to the Conference League for breaching UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules. Palace’s punishment opened the European door for Forest and deepened a sense of tension between the two camps.

Now that tension has spilled into a legal battle that stretches far beyond 90 minutes and a single banner. What began in the noise of the Holmesdale Road end will be dissected in the quiet of a courtroom, where the stakes revolve not around league positions or European qualification, but around reputation, responsibility and where the line is drawn between fan expression and defamation in the modern game.