Animal rights group urges Crystal Palace to retire live eagle mascot
Animal rights group PETA has asked Crystal Palace to retire Phoenix, the live bald eagle who appears at Selhurst Park on matchdays, with immediate effect.
In a letter to chief executive Sharon Lacey, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) asked the club to stop using Phoenix in its pre-match displays, the shows staged before kick-off. The group also asked Crystal Palace never to use a live animal as a mascot again. BBC Sport reported the letter.
Phoenix made her matchday debut against West Ham in August 2024. Palace first brought a live eagle onto matchdays in 2010. The eagle Kayla filled the role for ten years, until her death in 2020.
PETA's letter pointed to detailed records of live mascots, birds among them, being injured or killed after hitting walls, windows and match balls. The group said a bright stadium packed with loud, boisterous fans is no place for animals. It named bright lights, noise and crowds as risks to the eagle and to spectators.
The Guardian and The Athletic both reported the request on 20 October. The Independent's headline described the bird as "frightened".
Dr Carys Bennett, PETA's senior corporate projects manager, criticised the use of live eagles as entertainment props. She noted that the club already has a mascot called Pete the Eagle.
The eagles have been part of Palace's matchday life for more than a decade, and they have not always been safe from the crowd. In 2017, a Charlton Athletic fan was found guilty of trying to punch Kayla at a League Cup match two years earlier.
For anyone new to the debate, the core question is simple. Should a bird of prey be part of a football crowd's noise and light, or should the club keep the tradition to costumed characters? PETA has now put that question to Palace directly.
