Crystal Palace's English goalkeeper #01 Dean Henderson (C) raises the trophy as his team celebrates after winning the UEFA Conference League final football match between Crystal Palace FC and Rayo Vallecano de Madrid in Leipzig, eastern Germany, on May 27, 2026. (Photo by Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP)
Jean-Philippe Mateta scored as Crystal Palace beat Rayo Vallecano 1-0 in the UEFA Conference League final in Leipzig on Wednesday to secure the club’s first European trophy in their history.
After a cagey opening half with few clear chances, Mateta turned in a rebound for the game’s only goal on 51 minutes, sending departing coach Oliver Glasner off in style.
Glasner departs with a third trophy in two years as Palace manager, the most successful period in the club’s history, after dashing Rayo’s hopes of landing their first major silverware.
The win also completed Glasner’s objective of returning Palace to the Europa League, the competition they qualified for this season before falling foul of multi-club ownership rules and being demoted to the Conference League.
