For the first time in 3 years, Pitchero is refreshing package features and increasing the price of the club website packages. At the same time, card payment processing fees are being lowered for UK clubs, and a significant design upgrade is being rolled out.

This blog post explains everything Pitchero clubs need to know.

Summary of changes

• Lower card processing fees
• Major new design upgrade
• Less advertising
• Increase in club email accounts
• New package names
• New package pricing

Lower card processing fees for all UK clubs

Pitchero research shows clubs that collect payments online boost club revenue by, on average 30% by reducing the number of missed membership and match fee payments.

We want to help clubs increase revenue by collecting more payments online. To encourage this, we have negotiated a new fee structure with Stripe, which will be passed to clubs, resulting in a significant decrease in the transaction fees to all UK Pitchero clubs.

In addition, we are introducing a new Price Promise: If another club website software provider can offer lower payment processing fees - Pitchero will beat it!

Click here to learn more about our Price Promise.

The new processing fees for Credit & Debit card payments (powered by Stripe) will be available to all UK clubs from October 2023 and are listed in the table below.

[Note: The fees shown are Total Fees. They include Stripe and GoCardless charges. A club's final fee is subject to your VAT and charitable status. Payment processing is no longer available to new clubs using the Free package.]

Club is VAT registered:

*VAT registered Clubs are able to re-claim the VAT from HMRC

Club is not VAT registered:

To confirm: Clubs using the Ultimate package access the lowest fees. If a club is VAT registered and claims the VAT back on all payments, the club will pay only 1.67% + 15p. 

Registered Charities

If your club is a registered charity, the cheapest payment processing fees remain via Direct Debits and Instant Bank Pay transactions via our partner GoCardless. If your club is a registered charity and VAT registered, the fees are reduced even further. The fees below are available now and will not change.

Following these changes, Pitchero will offer some of the lowest payment processing fees in the UK. In the future, our mission will be to reduce payment processing fees further, removing any barrier stopping a club from collecting payments online.

Pitchero's fees on payment processing for international clubs will stay the same, but we can advise on achieving the best possible rate with Stripe.

If your club is on the Pitchero Ultimate package, the Pitchero price promise applies - ensuring you pay the lowest fees in the market.

If in doubt, please book a call and speak to your account manager.

Less advertising

Pitchero began a significant design upgrade to all club websites in July. Once completed, the design upgrade will remove intrusive banners from the network and reduce the impact of third-party advertising for all clubs on the Free and Elite package.

Major design upgrade

The club website design upgrade will continue throughout the summer and be completed by the beginning of Autumn.

A cornerstone of Pitchero has been to ensure all club websites remain at the cutting edge of design and performance. The new design upgrade has been a 12-month project from which all clubs will benefit.

The upgrade is part of your package. Club admins and volunteers do not need to do a thing. The upgrade will be released gradually over the coming weeks.

To learn more about the design upgrade - click here.

New package names and feature refresh

The Elite and Ultimate packages are being renamed, and the features refreshed.

The key changes are as follows:

Free package:

• The package name remains as the Free Package
• The club website template will be upgraded to the new V7 design
• Less advertising will be shown on each website
• The payment processing feature will no longer be included for new clubs. A new club must upgrade to the Elite or Ultimate package to collect payments online.

Elite package

• The package will be renamed the Standard Package
• The club website template will be upgraded to the V7 design
• From October 2023, lower credit card processing fees will be available to UK clubs
• A new charge will be added for clubs using this package with more than 20 teams
• The number of club email accounts will increase from 5 to 10.

Ultimate package

• The package will be renamed the Pro Package
• The club website template will be upgraded to the V7 design
• From the October 2023, lower credit card processing fees will be available to UK clubs
• The number of club email accounts will increase from 40 to 50.

New package pricing

For the first time in 3 years, Pitchero will increase the price of the Elite and Ultimate packages. All prices shown are inclusive of VAT. VAT-registered clubs can reclaim 20% from HMRC. 

Free package 

• This will remain free.

Elite package (Soon to be the Standard Package)

• The price will increase by £8 per month inc VAT
• The total per month is £38 inc VAT
• Clubs that pay annually receive one month FREE (Reducing the price to £35 per month)
• The package is limited to 20 teams, after which a club pays £2.50 inc VAT per additional team per month

Ultimate package (Soon to be the Pro Package)

• The price will increase by £9 per month inc VAT
• The total per month is £99 inc VAT
• Clubs that pay annually receive one month FREE (Reducing the price to £91 per month)
• The package offers unlimited teams

The price increase will be activated from the 12th of September 2023. Existing clubs will be charged the new pricing on their next payment date after the 12th of September 2023.

What should my club do next?

First, check which package you are currently using.  Go to your Club Dashboard and click Package top left. The Package section of the Club Dashboard includes a new Upgrade section with a next-step recommendation.  

Over the next 4 weeks, multiple emails will be sent to all Club Admins with access to the Package settings in the Club Admin Dashboard. The email will include instructions on what to do next.

Contact Your Account Manager

If you have any questions or wish to discuss the best package for your club, please book a call with your Account Manager.

Your Account Manager can review your club's requirements and provide the best solution.

Click here to book your call.

Summary of key dates

• Summer 2023 - Design upgrades
  
• 12th September 2023 - New package pricing live
• October 2023 - New lower card payment processing fees available to UK clubs