Crystal Palace co-owner Josh Harris on why he invested in South London club + backing for Patrick Vieira

BY ANDREW MCSTEEN & EDMUND BRACK

Crystal Palace co-owner Joshua Harris has explained his reasoning behind why he invested in the South Londoners and has praised the appointment of new head coach Patrick Vieira.

Harris, who invested an initial £50million alongside David Blitzer in 2015 into Crystal Palace, also owns NBA team the Philadelphia 76ers and NHL team New Jersey Devils.

Harris was speaking at the ‘Leaders Week’ event this morning at Twickenham Stadium in south-west London.

Here, the South London Press brings you his key quotes.

 ON INVESTING IN PALACE IN 2015

“David Blitzer is a successful investor. In 2015 we met a gentleman called Steve Parish. I lived in London. David had lived in London. We had been bit by the (Premier League) bug. We always loved football – it’s the greatest league in football. People would debate that, but I believe that’s true.

“And this team in South London – where there are three million people – the pride of South London, (is) a very unique team. The Premier League, we all know, it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s hugely competitive. One of the really attractive things about it was that we had a local partner, Steve Parish, who had really saved the team and was restoring (them) to greatness.

“For all those reasons, and Croydon, where the team plays, is an incredible catchment area – so how could we not?

 “With Steve (Parish), the fans around the stadium and the supporters, we said: ‘Okay, we’re going to take on some of the bigger clubs.’

 “We did it. It’s been hard, but it’s very exciting. Palace are on the right side of history, and we’re on the rise.”

 

ON THE THREAT OF RELEGATION AND PATRICK VIEIRA

 “It’s easy to talk about that when you live through it. Relegation is what makes UK soccer, UK soccer. Every game matters. In the US leagues, if you lose, you get a higher draft pick, so it’s meant to create parity.

 “We’ve got very young (squad) at Palace, and it’s working for us. Patrick Vieira has been a great choice; we’re lucky to have him. But when you make changes in the Premier League, it’s different because of relegation.

 “Relegation is a great equaliser, and it definitely, sometimes, makes you make (more) shorter-term decisions (than in US sports). The little bit of a tough thing as an owner is that you do everything right, but things don’t always go well – people get injured, things happen.

“Right now, it’s too important to the fans and the league. If you evaluate it as an owner, I would say that the lower end of the Premier League is an issue, but for really smart management teams like the one that Steve (Parish) has put together (at Palace), it works. You may navigate around it, but it’s part of the excitement of sport. It’s why people watch it. I would leave it.

“Relegation certainly forces you to be very focused on immediate outcomes of the team all the time. You have to pivot very quickly. You can innovate, but you have to be willing to pivot and go back to how you did things before. “

ON LONG-TERM PLANNING

 “You have to do it very, very carefully, and you have to do it over time and think about it a lot. (You have to) make sure you make the right people choices, both on the pitch and off the pitch. It’s people choices – it’s culture.

“The player and manager decisions that you make are very critical and important. You have to make them very carefully and be very thoughtful about it, but, for sure, you can still innovate.

 “Obviously, we (Palace) are scrappy and on the move, mid-table, moving hopefully towards the top 10. For us, it’s fun. It’s enjoyable. We like that underdog, but on the rise (tag), we have to be a little bit more agile for it to flip.”

 

ON HIS INVOLVEMENT WITH CLUBS HE HAS INVESTED IN

“You have to really engage with the city that you’re at, and you have to be there. You have to be present. (We knew with Palace) that we’re not going to be present in South London (for) every game, but the chairman, the main owner, has to be present. You have to be part of the community. You have to be doing things in the community, and you have to outpace people’s expectations.

“That’s your job. Your job is to win and to put on a great show in advance. I would say that that takes really high quality people.”

 

ON THE BREAKAWAY SUPER LEAGUE ATTEMPT

 “We were surprised. Truthfully, it was a very bold move. We like the idea of every team, every fan group and supporter group having a shot of rising through their specific League and getting into UEFA (competitions).

 “When the Super League came out, it challenged that system, and there were certain teams that were getting upfront payments, and they were permanent members of the new Champions League.

“We didn’t think that was right for a lot of reasons. It would create a big fight over media – ‘what is the most important match?’

 “It would have garnered a lot of media dollars and a lot of eyeballs, viewership. We felt that would have the effect of disenfranchising some of the national leagues like the Premier League.

“We felt like it wasn’t fair, so we spoke up, and a lot of other people agreed with us particularly. Most importantly, from the fans point of view – they’re the people that ultimately create all this (football) – they didn’t like and that’s really where it fell apart.”

 

ON COVID

“Sports is a covid-affected industry, so as an owner, half your revenues go away immediately because your fans are gone – 30-70 per cent depending on your sports. No one (was) crying for us (as owners), and we absorbed all of that.

“It made me realise three things: South London, Newark, Philadelphia, these cities went through terrible times, but we were part of the community (so) we did everything from buying safety equipment to investing in vaccines to investing in technology to create vaccines, to getting people laptops who didn’t have one, to getting people meals.

“It really underscored the need for you to be part of the community and step up.

“Secondly, the teams themselves were deeply missed by the nations and the communities. Watching the players themselves, whether it be (Wilfried) Zaha here (in London) or (others) step up and use their platforms, you realise that the athletes themselves were young men.

“In our case, and men and women globally, they have massive platforms, and we also have massive platforms (as owners), and so they stepped up, and we stepped up and used those platforms for good.”