Football debt recovery scheme

Modified on Wed, 26 Jul, 2023 at 5:10 PM

Sometimes in football there are occasions when players leave clubs and leagues without paying their debts which can leave clubs facing financial difficulty. The Amateur FA can help with the recovery of debts subject to the following criteria:

1. It is a valid debt

Football debts are defined as those costs arising directly from football activity and as these include disciplinary costs (for example fines), match costs (for example match fees) and playing expenses (for example pitch hire). Incidental costs (such as fund-raising activities and club subscriptions) do not fall within the scope of Football Debt Recovery.

Here are examples of valid debts which would fall under the debt recovery procedures:

- Fines from discipline cases (cautions, dismissals, misconduct charges)

- Match fees

The following would not be a valid debt:

- Kit/Equipment

- Club subscriptions/Signing on fees/Internal club fines

- Lottery or any other fundraising schemes

- End of season trip costs

2. Efforts have been made to recover the debt(s)

In order to use the debt recovery scheme genuine efforts must first have been made to recover the debt. These will include writing to the debtor(s) notifying them of what they owe and asking for payment and not selecting them for matches once it becomes obvious that there is a problem.

You should approach The Amateur FA as soon as it is clear there is a problem. In all cases this must be within 28 days of formal payment being requested and 112 days of the debt being incurred. You will have to pay the Amateur FA an admin fee of £25 per debt to be recovered when submitting a claim. This will be added to the amount being claimed from the debtor(s) and will be refunded to you once money owed is recovered from the debtor(s).

Please see our website for more information and the form to fill in to start the process:

https://www.amateur-fa.com/clubs-and-competitions/club-finance/debt-recovery

Please note we can only pursue the football debt recovery scheme for clubs that are affiliated to the Amateur FA.