Crystal Palace FC: Eagle-Eyed Justice

Date of Publication: 4th June 2025

Today’s blog follows Crystal Palace FC’s recent success in winning the FA Cup Final at Wembley, their first ever major trophy. Now a well-established Premier League club, the journey to the topflight was not an easy one as detailed in the former Chairman, Simon Jordan’s book, ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’. 

Chapter 13, titled, ‘Dowie on Trial’, covers the experience of Iain Dowie leaving as the team’s Manager in order to join local rivals, Charlton Athletic FC. 

In the book, Jordan said that Dowie had asked to leave his role at Crystal Palace as he wanted to be nearer to his family in Bolton. He added that he asked Dowie on Saturday 20th May 2006 and again on Monday 22nd May 2006 if he was, ‘going to Charlton’, prior to signing any Release Agreement. The Release Agreement would, in turn, allow Dowie to leave the club and subsequently waive a £1m compensation clause in his employment contract. 

Dowie’s alleged response on both occasions was to emphatically deny he was joining Charlton. 

Eight days later, on 30th May 2006, Dowie was unveiled as Charlton’s new Manager. 

In response, Jordan issued a writ for ‘false misrepresentation’, claiming that he had been misled about Dowie’s reasons for leaving Crystal Palace. At a press conference announcing his appointment as Charlton Manager, Dowie said, ‘No contact whatsoever and I’m fully comfortable that I’ve covered myself with lots of integrity’. 

This is an awkward sentence which makes for difficult reading. It doesn’t deny the allegations and seeks to convince, as opposed to conveying the truth. It’s akin to a word salad. What stopped Dowie from denying what he was accused of? Often it is the truth that gets in the way. To do so would have been a lie. Who had ‘no contact?’. 

Dowie went on to say, ‘I had the conversation for, for two hours with Simon um and there’s an awful lot said and ah most of it was heard by my family, so for me, I, I, I know I can look him in the eye and know I’ve done this with integrity’. 

The conversation with Simon was for two hours during which an awful lot was said, most of which was heard by his family. Were they in the same room? Most of what Dowie said was likely heard by his family when he told them later. 

Dowie’s reason for being able to look Simon Jordan in the eye and know he’s done what he has done (which he does not say) is because ‘most of the conversation was heard by his family’. 

Dowie was being deceptive. His meaning of ‘integrity’, when compared to the dictionary definition, was somewhat different. 

The case was heard in the High Court and on 14th June 2007, it ruled that Dowie had ‘deceived’ Jordan and made ‘false representations’ in conversations with Crystal Palace stating he had had no contact with Charlton when he had in fact spoken to them. 

Dowie was ordered to pay Crystal Palace's legal bill, estimated at up to £400,000, and a similar amount to his own legal team plus compensation to Crystal Palace. 

In 2008, Dowie and Crystal Palace reached an out-of-court agreement ‘on terms acceptable to Crystal Palace Football Club’. 

Into the Valley and likely, ‘Glad (it’s) all over’. 

Photo Credit: 1000logos.net 

All blog subjects are identified, validated and written by the DDL Team. 

See www.ddlltd.com for more on Deception Detection Lab Ltd.