Checklist to do before starting the affiliation process: 

• Ensure all outstanding invoices are paid (check your Amount Outstanding on the Whole Game System)
• Ensure all player suspensions from last season have been assigned fixtures (unless the suspension is carrying over to the new season 20/21). Use the drop-down menu on the Whole Game System to access previous seasons:

   

• If you have a team with any players aged under 18, then all managers and coaches (including assistants), plus physios, should have an in-date FA DBS and be listed against the relevant team on the Whole Game System.
• Identify all 16- and 17-year-old players at your club and record them on the Whole Game System.
• Committee members at a club with any under 18 players should complete the The FA’s Safeguarding for Committee Members online course.
• We strongly encourage all clubs to access the Player Registration tab on the Whole Game System and remove any players that are no longer part of your club or have duplicate FANs. If you have any questions or need support about duplicate FAN numbers, please contact dupefan@amateur-fa.com

Affiliation Package and Fees

This season, the affiliation package we've developed offers reduced fees per team as well as cheaper personal accident and public liability insurance:

• Affiliation fees will be reduced by £15 per team 
• The Amateur FA have a new Public Liability and Personal Accident group policy insurer, Sportsguard. You can find details below under Public Liability and Personal Accident Insurance.
• Public liability insurance through Sportsguard will be £20 reduced from £24 and you can sign up to Public liability cover through the affiliation process
• The basic level of Personal Accident insurance through Sportsguard will be £27 per team (was £30 last season). Plus this level now includes cover for broken bones, offering a further saving. You can find further information by clicking here.

Public Liability Insurance

Public liability insurance per club is mandatory. You can purchase your Personal Liability insurance cover through the Amateur FA with Sportsguard through your affiliation application. If you choose to purchase or have already purchased Public Liability Insurance with a different provider, you must provide evidence of cover before affiliation can be approved.

Download the Sportsguard brochure here.

Personal Accident Insurance

Personal Accident Insurance is a requirement for all teams. Please note that you will be required to purchase 1 x personal accident insurance per team. You can purchase your Personal Accident insurance through the Amateur FA with Sportsguard. Download their brochure here.

Please click here to indicate if you would like to buy Personal Accident Insurance from Sportsguard through the Amateur FA:

We will then purchase the cover for you and send you your certificate.

Invoicing

Affiliation fees and public liability and personal accident insurance will be invoiced separately to clubs at a later date when we know more about the start of the 20/21 season. We will be in a position to offer a direct debit scheme to clubs who wish to spread the affiliation cost over the season:

Please click here to tell us how you would like to be invoiced.

There will be no closing date (and therefore no late affiliation fee). However, all clubs must be affiliated before they start playing football in the 20/21 season.

How do you apply to affiliate?

The affiliation process should be completed via the Whole Game System. For existing clubs, the affiliation forms will already be populated in the system and you will be able to login and simply edit details that have changed from the season before.

When using the Whole Game System your application does not have to be completed in one go. You can always save your progress and come back to it at a later time, which can be particularly useful if you are a large club.

The following video also offers step by step guidance on the process of club affiliation through the Whole Game System:

//www.thefa.com/get-involved/more/whole-game/club-affiliation

What if you are a new club?

If you are a new club, please access the following online form to register your club - https://bit.ly/AFANewClub

We will then add you to the system and provide you with your login details for Whole Game System.

County Cups

As we currently do not know when football will resume for the 20/21 season, we will be contacting you separately about entering our County Cups very shortly.

When you are in the affiliation process and you get to the Teams and County Cups entries page, you will still need to tick these boxes to proceed through the affiliation.



Adult clubs with U18 players

It remains a requirement that all volunteers carrying out regulated activity with anyone aged under 18, require an Enhanced FA DBS certificate before they commence their role within football.

All individuals whose DBS certificates expire between 1st March 2020 and 1st October 2020 will not be required to renew their DBS certificates until 1 year after the scheduled date of expiry. For the avoidance of doubt, volunteers will not be permitted to carry out regulated activity with U18s until they have obtained a DBS certificate.

For more details on The FA DBS checks, please see here: To start the process to obtain a FA DBS certificate, you should speak to your Club Welfare Officer or the Amateur FA Safeguarding team, available at safeguarding@amateur-fa.com

Clubs with any players under the age of 18, should also adopt, adhere, and implement an appropriate Safeguarding Children’s Policy. If you need guidance on this, please contact the Safeguarding team via safeguarding@amateur-fa.com

Club Welfare Officer

It is strongly recommended that all clubs who have at least one player below the age of 18, have a named Club Welfare Officer. More information on the role and its responsibilities can be seen here.

If you have any further questions, please contact our Safeguarding team on safeguarding@amateur-fa.com.

If you require details on upcoming Welfare Officer or Safeguarding Children Workshops to suitably upskill an individual, please contact courses@amateur-fa.com

Any Other Questions?

We are here to help. If you have any questions or need some advice please contact the team on affiliation@amateur-fa.com and a member of staff will be happy to assist you.