Rugby Club Sponsorship & Gifting Policy Document

Effective Date: [Insert Date]
Review Date: [Insert Date]

 

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide clear guidelines for managing sponsorship & gifting opportunities within Amesbury RFCugby Club. The policy ensures that all sponsorship activities align with the club’s overall goals, protect the club’s reputation, and ensure fair and transparent handling of sponsorship funds. It will also cover the receipt of gifts to teams.

 

Scope

This policy applies to all teams, members, and stakeholders within Amesbury Rugby Club. It governs all sponsorship activities involving the club’s name, badge, or any other associated branding.

 

Objectives

• Ensure sponsorship opportunities align with the club’s vision, values and targetsobjectives.

• Safeguard the club’s reputation and brand.

• Ensure fair distribution of sponsorship benefits across the club.

• Avoid duplication of efforts and conflicts with existing sponsorships.

• Ensure proper handling and allocation of sponsorship funds.

• Clarify the implications of individual team sponsorships on overall club finances (To be discussed).

 

Core Principles

• All sponsorship income is club income, regardless of which team or section sourced it.

• Sponsorship can be targeted (e.g. a specific team or section), but must be managed centrally.

• Every sponsor agreement must contribute a surplus beyond the cost of items, to support wider club needs.
  All club assets (e.g. shorts, kit, branding space, digital platforms) are owned and managed by the club.

• Sponsorship must align with the values and image of the club and be approved by the leadership team.

 

Utilisation of Sponsorship Funds

 

Allocation of Sponsorship Funds

• Sponsorship funds are considered additional income beyond the basic operational needs covered by membership fees.

• These funds will be used for additional, specific events, equipment, and items that the club may not be able to afford solely from membership income. It also adds additional funds to the clubs contingency to safeguard in the event further sponsorship is not attained.

• The Club Executive committeeLUB EXECUTIVE is responsible for determining the best use of these surplus funds, ensuring they serve the sponsors’ intentions, the club’s broader needs, and add value to the entire club.

 

Commercial Agreement

• Sponsorship should be viewed as a commercial agreement where sponsors contribute to the club’s finances in exchange for promotional opportunities.

• This includes the suitable placement of the sponsor’s brand or name to ensure visibility and recognition.

• Sponsorships are not solely to cover the costs of specific items that do not offer residual value to the wider club. This is covered under gifting.

• All sponsorship income must cover item costs plus a minimum 30% surplus to support club-wide activity.

• Surplus is ring fenced for club development, facilities, kit investment, and support for underfunded sections.

• If a sponsor is sourced by a team, that team benefits first (e.g. by getting the branded shirts), but the club retains surplus and controls the contract.

 

Decision-Making

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE will evaluate potential uses of sponsorship funds, prioritising projects and initiatives that benefit the entire club. This will be channelled by the management team submitting timely and accurate requests for any budgetary requirements.

• Decisions will be guided by the need to balance sponsor satisfaction with the strategic goals of the club.

 

Sponsorship Approval Process

 

Proposal Submission

• Any team or section can approach potential sponsors.

• All contact must be recorded and shared with the sponsorship coordinator or club committee.

• Only designated committee members or approved reps may finalise agreements to ensure consistency and legality.

• All sponsorship proposals must be submitted in writing to the Club Executive Committee

• Proposals should include details of the sponsor, sponsorship amount, benefits offered, and any specific conditions.

 

Evaluation Criteria

• Alignment with club values and objectives.

• Commercial viability and overall benefit to the club.

• Impact on existing sponsorships and club activities.

• Safeguarding of the club’s name and brand.

• Fairness and equity across the club’s teams and members.

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Approval Process

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE will review all proposals and make decisions based on the evaluation criteria.

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE reserves the right to reject any proposal that does not meet the criteria.

• Approved sponsorships will be formalised through a written agreement outlining all terms and conditions.

Management of Sponsorship Funds

Fund Allocation

• All sponsorship funds must be deposited into the club’s official bank account.

• Funds will be allocated based on the agreed terms and for the specified purposes only.

• A portion of any surplus funds may be allocated to contribute to club-wide initiatives.

1. Financial Oversight

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE will oversee the management and allocation of sponsorship funds.

• Financial arrangements will be held by the Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE to ensure transparency and accountability.

• Any discrepancies or misuse of funds will be investigated and addressed promptly.

1. Individual Team Sponsorships

   1. Conditions

• Individual teams may seek sponsorships for specific items or activities not covered by the club’s general sponsorship efforts. For example squad training tops, pre match tops, add in other permissible items. Any purchase of these items must align with the clubs agreed partner (VX-3) for on field usage. Off-field attire can be discussed on a case by case basis, this should be brought forward by the team managers.

• Playing strips are excluded as they are centrally purchased under an agreement with the supplier and budgeted annually across the club. They also need to reflect the club wide sponsors. Could have a sub clause that offers the opportunity to submit potential sponsors for addition to playing shirts subject to commercial arrangements and associated income can be shared across the club (I can explain my thinking)

• All individual team sponsorships must be approved by the Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE to ensure alignment with the club’s objectives and fair distribution of benefits.

1. Implications

• Teams must understand that individual sponsorships should not conflict with or undermine club-wide sponsorship efforts.

• Any sponsorship funds received by individual teams must be managed in accordance with the club’s financial oversight policies.

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE reserves the right to base any sponsorship allocation on each sections paid members, i.e. the club will not purchase 25 training tops for a paid membership of 16. 

• The club may deduct any outstanding membership fees from team specific sponsorship funds received by individual teams where the benefit could be realised by non paying members.. (NOT sure this is viable but I think we need something in our policies that says we wont accept non payment and bills have to be paid somehow before surplus sponsorship can be fully spent)

1. Protecting the Club’s Name and Brand

• All sponsorship agreements must include clauses to protect the club’s name, badge, and reputation.

• Sponsors must be reputable and align with the club’s values.

• Any promotional activities involving the club’s branding must be pre-approved by the Club Executive committeeCLUB EXECUTIVE.

1. Communication and Reporting

• Team Managers must communicate any sponsorship activity at the earliest opportunity for transparency to the Club Executive committeeCLUB EXECUTIVE. This should be staffed through the Sponsorship manager who holds a master document of approached/approved/declined sponsors.

• The Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE will communicate all approved sponsorship agreements to relevant stakeholders within the club.

• Regular updates on sponsorship activities and funds allocation will be provided to the club members for their awareness (I think its important we are transparent in communicating sponsorship activity across the whole club as it highlights the good work of the club and builds confidence)

• Any concerns or issues regarding sponsorships should be reported to the Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE immediately.

1. Review and Amendments

• This policy will be reviewed annually or as requiredneeded to ensure its effectiveness.

• Any amendments to the policy will be approved by the Club Executive committee CLUB EXECUTIVE and communicated to all club members.

11. Gifting

The Club Executive committee and wider management team support the concept of gifting items to teams provided it is conducted in the appropriate manner and in line with club policy.

• All gift proposals must be staffed through the relevant management team and presented to the Club Executive committee for consideration. 

• Gifted items of clothing must either be plain (to allow potential addition of club branding) or be purchased via the clubs approved suppliers to ensure the clubs image/branding are correct.

• No gifts received should carry any company logo/messaging or company information of the provider/supplier. The use of these items would be contrary to a “gift” as would be providing a media/social media outlet for the supplier which would be contrary to the sponsorship policy.

• Where possible and practicable, gifts would be available for use by the whole club, although it is understood this will not always be the case.

 

Approved by: [Name], Club Chairman
Date: [Insert Date]

Acknowledged by: [Name], Club Secretary
Date: [Insert Date]