How is it possible? "Premier League star" becomes the first player to win two European cup titles in the same year.
On 28 May 2026, interesting details emerged after Crystal Palace, ranked 15th in the English Premier League, claimed the 2025-26 UEFA Conference League title by defeating Rayo Vallecano, 8th in Spain's La Liga, 1-0 in the final.
This marked Crystal Palace's first European cup victory in their 120-year history and their third trophy under manager Oliver Glasner, following the 2024-25 FA Cup and the 2025 Community Shield, before he left the club at the end of his contract.
Additionally, Iván Geszond, the Ivory Coast international and 2026 World Cup squad member, made history as the first player to win two European cup trophies in the same season: the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Conference League.
This was because Geszond played seven Europa League matches for Aston Villa in the 2025-26 season, scoring two goals, before being loaned to Crystal Palace in the January transfer window, where he appeared in six Conference League matches and scored one goal.
Both clubs ended up winning their respective titles, and UEFA awarded 50 winner's medals to each victorious team, a contrast to the English Premier League which only issues 40 medals per team and requires players to have played at least five matches to qualify.
Since Iván Geszond played and scored for both teams, he will be recorded as a member of Aston Villa's 2025-26 Europa League winning squad and Crystal Palace's 2025-26 Conference League winning squad.
