Case Study: Amateur club gains sponsors through digital…

This case study shows how an amateur club with around 180 members and 8 teams went from "we can't find any sponsors" to three permanent partnerships and €2,400 in additional sponsorship income in two seasons - not through luck, but through digital visibility. Names and locations are anonymized, the steps are real and repeatable.

Initial situation: Good club, weak online presence

The club (let's call it FC Rheindorf) had committed members, a well-kept pitch - and a Facebook page with irregular posts. The "website" was an outdated one-page solution, game plan as a PDF from 2023. Sponsorship requests ended with "We're thinking about it."

The turning point: website first, not sponsors folder

The new sponsorship officer realized: Nobody says yes if the online presentation is not convincing. Instead of writing 20 emails, the club first set up KlubPortal:

• New Club website with club colors and current game plan (automatically from the association)
• Sponsor area with three packages (bronze/silver/gold)
• “Become a partner” page with contact form

Duration until go-live: 10 days part-time.

Try for free — same entry as FC Rheindorf.

First acquisition: Pay instead of asking

In the second step, the association collected reach data:

• Website: after 6 weeks 890 visitors/month (Google Analytics)
• Game day spectators: average 120
• Members and families: approx. 400 people in the area

These numbers were in the sponsorship flyer and in every email. See our email template.

Result after season 1

• Partner 1 — Bakery (Bronze, €350): Logo on website, banner in place. Owner: "My customers play with you - you have to see that."
• Partner 2 — Car repair shop (Silver, €750): Homepage logo + news mention. Decision after website visit.
• Partner 3 — tax advisor (bronze, €400): The board knew him personally — but the website gave “the professional impression.”

Total: €1,500 new income. ROI of the platform: positive in month 2.

Season 2: Upgrade and Range Report

Car repair shop upgraded to gold (€1,200). New partner catering (€500). The association sent a short quarterly report: website visitors, top news, app users. Two partners extended earlier than planned.

What you can take from it

1. Website before acquisition - not the other way around
2. Packages with clear prices
3. Reach in numbers - also modestly honest
4. Follow-up and delivery what was promised
5. Digital + personal – website convinces, conversation concludes

7 sponsorship strategies · Football clubs · Prices

Transferable to your club?

FC Rheindorf is not a large club. No marketing team. Volunteering. If it works there, you're probably only missing the digital basis - not talent or commitment.

Next steps based on the model

1. Evaluate website status honestly (see Checklist)
2. Define packages
3. Approach 5 companies this week

Lessons learned from FC Rheindorf

Lesson 1: Website before acquisition - always. Lesson 2: Numbers honestly, not exaggeratedly. Lesson 3: Deliver what’s in the package — immediately. Lesson 4: Upgrade existing partners instead of just chasing new ones. Lesson 5: Combine digital and personal.

The club invested less than €400 net in the platform in the first year - and received four times as much sponsorship. Not every club achieves this immediately, but the direction of leverage is clear: Visibility sells more easily when it is visible.

ROI calculation for the board of directors

Platform costs year 1: conservative €300-500. New sponsorship income FC Rheindorf: €1,500 season 1, €2,400 cumulative after season 2. Positive even with half success. Additionally: less time for manual website maintenance, more time for acquisition discussions. Digitalization as a sponsorship enabler, not as a cost center.

Pay the bill for your club: How much sponsorship is missing today? How much does an unprofessional website cost in lost deals? Often more expensive than any subscription.

Club portal in everyday club life

KlubPortal combines website, game plan synchronization, optional app and player management in one interface that volunteers without an IT background can use. Instead of five tools with five logins, you maintain data once - it appears everywhere members, parents and sponsors look. This not only reduces costs, but above all friction on the board: less “Who has the current list?”, less duplicate maintenance on the weekend, more time for sports and partnerships.

Many clubs start with the club website, expand with app and player management as soon as the benefits become visible in everyday life. You can find an overview on the Football Clubs page; The Prices help with budget planning. If you are unsure whether the next step is right: test it for free and check it in real day-to-day club life - not just in theory.

Conclusion: Digital club = sponsorable club

FC Rheindorf is not an isolated case. Amateur clubs attract sponsors when they act like partners who can be taken seriously. The website is proof.

Club website · Test for free