Sunday morning, and the treasurer has a list
Your club has twelve junior teams from under-7s to under-16s, run by volunteer coaches who are mostly parents themselves. Subs are monthly, or termly, or annual with an early payment discount, depending on what the committee agreed three AGMs ago. Siblings get a reduction. A few families pay in instalments by arrangement with the treasurer. Everyone pays by bank transfer, with a reference that is supposed to be the child's name and age group, but is often 'football', 'subs' or a parent's surname that does not match the child's.
So every month the treasurer downloads the bank statement, works out who has paid, and sends each team's coach a list of names to chase. The coach, who would rather be coaching, then has to ask a parent about money in front of other parents. Some coaches do not bother. Some kids have played all season without anyone paying.
Why subs collection keeps sliding
Parents are not, on the whole, dodging. They forget, their bank reference is unclear, or they are waiting for a reminder that never comes. The club's system relies on one volunteer's evenings and on coaches being willing to chase.
- Bank transfers have to be matched to children by hand, and references are unreliable.
- Sibling discounts, instalment arrangements and early payment rates are remembered, not recorded.
- Reminders depend on coaches, who are volunteers and would rather not.
- Nobody knows who is behind until the treasurer has done a reconciliation.
- Families struggling to pay have no discreet way to say so.
What the sliding costs the club
Money, first: unpaid subs are pitch hire, referee fees and kit the club still has to pay for. Then goodwill. Coaches resent being debt collectors. Parents who pay on time notice when others do not. The treasurer, who took on the job to help, burns out and steps down at the next AGM, and nobody wants the role.
There is also a quieter cost. Some children stop coming because their family was embarrassed about subs, when the club would happily have helped.
Subs collection set up around your rules
Our first step is always to check whether a club management app would do the job. Several (Spond, Pitchero and others) take subs payments, and for many clubs setting one up properly is enough. Where your fee rules, or the tools you already use, need more, we build around them.
- Each child is registered once, with the parent or guardian as payer and siblings linked to the same family.
- Your fee rules are set up: age group rates, sibling reduction, early payment price, instalments.
- Parents pay by direct debit through GoCardless or by card through Stripe, so payments are tied to the child, not a bank reference.
- Failed or missed payments generate a polite automatic reminder to the parent, from the club, not from the coach.
- The treasurer sees a list of who is up to date and who is behind; coaches see only whether a player is registered, not their payment position.
- A private 'need help with subs?' option lets families contact the welfare officer or treasurer directly, and any reduction is recorded without the family being named on shared lists.
| Situation | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Parent pays monthly | Transfer with a vague reference | Direct debit tied to the child |
| Two siblings | Treasurer remembers the discount | Discount applied from the family link |
| Payment missed | Coach asked to chase | Automatic reminder to the parent |
| Family struggling | Awkward conversation or nothing | Private request, reduction recorded quietly |
| Treasurer's month end | Bank statement matched by hand | Paid and unpaid list ready |
A Sunday morning with the new set-up
The coach runs the session. Nobody mentions money on the touchline. The treasurer checks a list once a week, which shows the handful of families behind and whether reminders have gone. Payments land in the club account with the child's name attached. When the treasurer hands over at the AGM, the successor inherits a working system, not a spreadsheet only one person understands.
Is this your club?
- Parents pay subs by bank transfer with unclear references.
- Coaches are asked to chase parents for money.
- The treasurer reconciles the bank statement by hand every month.
- Sibling discounts and instalments are tracked in someone's head.
- Some children have played all season with nothing paid.