What football club software should include

Football club software should handle the day-to-day work of a school or club, not just store names. Before you sign up for one, it helps to know what to look for, because many tools look good in a demo and fall short once the second month of real use begins.

This guide gives you a checklist to compare options with a clear head.

The essentials

These features cover what a club does every month. If one is missing, you will end up running spreadsheets alongside.

• Player and guardian records. One profile per player, with age group, guardian and documents, without duplicated data.
• Age groups and coaches. Groups by age or level, with people responsible for each.
• Training and match calendar. One calendar that families can check.
• Attendance. A roll that the coach can mark from a phone, on the pitch.
• Accounts and payments. Charge items, recurring fees, recorded payments and a report of who owes.
• Family communication. Notices that reach the guardian’s phone and that the club can verify.

What makes the difference

Once the basics are covered, these capabilities separate a handy tool from one that gets in the way.

• Online payments. Families pay from their phone and the payment lands on the right account.
• Tournaments and match sheets. Fixtures, line-ups, goals and league table without adding anything by hand.
• Role-based permissions. Coaches see their groups, admin staff see the accounts, coordinators see what concerns them.
• Reports and export. The ability to download the information you need to Excel.
• Several languages. Useful if the club has families or staff who do not speak the main language.

Questions to ask

Before deciding, ask:

1. What happens to our data if we decide to leave one day? Can we export it?
2. How is data on minors protected, and who can see it?
3. Do we have to install anything, or does it work in the browser and on a phone?
4. How is it priced: per player, per club or by usage? Are there setup costs?
5. Is there a trial or a demo with sample data?
6. Who helps us at the start and when a question comes up?

Be wary of any provider that does not answer the first and second questions clearly. Player data belongs to the club, and data on minors calls for special care.

Warning signs

• It asks you to enter everything by hand and offers no tidy way to import your information.
• It only works on a desktop computer, while your coaches work from the pitch.
• It does not tell a coach’s role from an administrator’s.
• Accounts are not connected to payments, so you have to match them by hand.
• It promises features it cannot show working.

How to test it before committing

A good way to evaluate software is to simulate a real month:

1. Create two age groups with a few sample players.
2. Schedule a week of training and take attendance from a phone.
3. Generate the month’s fees and record a payment.
4. Send a notice to a sample family.
5. Download an accounts report.

If each step is clear and quick, you are on the right track. If you get lost at any of them, picture your coach doing it with a clipboard in hand.

Where ONCE 11 fits

ONCE 11 is management software for football clubs and schools that brings these areas together: players, age groups, calendar, attendance, accounts with online payments, tournaments with a live match sheet and a guardian app. You can explore each need on its own, for example monthly fee collection or attendance and training, and decide whether it matches the way your club works.

Whatever you choose, use the list above as a guide and test before you commit.