Selling to sporting clubs works when you call in the off-season or pre-season, reach the person who owns the decision, and respect how the club decides. Professional and semi-professional clubs have paid general managers and commercial staff. Community clubs run on volunteer committees that vote at meetings, so book the person who will take your offer to the committee.
Sports club sales follow a calendar. Call during finals and you get "call back later". Call in the off-season and you reach people while they choose next year's suppliers.
Who actually decides at a sporting club?
It depends on whether the club has paid staff. Ask early: "Is that handled by staff, or does it go to the committee?"
| Role | What they own | How to reach them |
|---|---|---|
| General manager (paid staff) | Commercial priorities and supplier contracts | Club main line, in pre-season or off-season |
| Commercial, membership or ticketing manager | Sponsorship, memberships and ticketing | Direct line, outside match days |
| President, secretary or treasurer (volunteer club) | Committee decisions, voted at meetings | The listed club contact, at an agreed callback time |
| State association administrator | Programmes and any preferred supplier arrangements | Outside competition administration peaks |
| Venue manager or event director | Operations, bookings and supplier choice | During planning, never on event days |
Volunteers have day jobs. Calls are legal until 8pm on weekdays, so an agreed early-evening callback can suit a committee member, unlike most B2B calling.
State associations change the route. If the association runs a preferred supplier arrangement, clubs may not be able to buy outside it. Ask whether approval sits centrally before you build a list.
When is the best time to call sporting clubs?
Call in the off-season and pre-season, when clubs plan memberships, ticketing, sponsorship and suppliers. Avoid match days, finals and the weeks around the annual general meeting.
- Winter codes such as AFL, rugby league, rugby union, community football (soccer) and netball usually plan over summer.
- Summer codes such as cricket usually plan over winter. Some codes, such as basketball, run competitions across the year, so ask when the club's season starts.
- After the annual general meeting, committee roles often change. Confirm who holds each role.
- Venues and event organisers plan months ahead. Call during planning, not delivery.
For paid staff, mid-morning and early afternoon on weekdays usually work best, as in our guide to the best time to cold call in Australia.
Calls must stay within the hours in the Telemarketing and Research Calls Industry Standard 2017: 9am to 8pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm on Saturdays, never on Sundays or national public holidays. Callers must identify the business and keep calling line identification switched on. This is general information, not legal advice.
Volunteer contacts often list a personal mobile, and personal numbers can be on the Do Not Call Register, so wash them against the Register before calling.
How do you get past the club switchboard or volunteer contact?
Many community clubs have no reception, just a listed number or general email, so name the topic clearly. See our guide to getting past the gatekeeper.
- "Hi, it's Ellie from (your company). I'm calling about the club's ticketing and memberships for next season. Who looks after that?"
- "Is that a paid role, or someone on the committee?"
- "When does the committee next meet? I'd like to get information to the right person before then."
- For a general inbox: "Hi, can this be passed on to whoever looks after (ticketing, sponsorship, venue hire)?"
What opener works when selling to sporting clubs?
Tie the reason for the call to the club's season, not to your product features.
"Hi Steve, it's Ellie from (your company). I'm calling about next season's memberships and ticketing. Clubs at your level often set that up over the off-season, so I wanted to catch you before it's locked in. Is that something you look after, or does it go to the committee?"
Why it works. Club contacts field a steady stream of sponsorship and fundraising requests. Naming next season and the off-season set-up shows you know how the club runs, and the closing question gets you either the decision maker or the route to the committee.
What objections will you hear from sporting clubs?
Most objections from clubs are about timing, committee process or money.
| Objection | What it really means | Response |
|---|---|---|
| "That's a committee decision." | They can't decide alone, or it's a polite no | "When does the committee meet? I can send a one-page summary, or book a short call with whoever will present it." |
| "We're mid-season, call back later." | No time until the season ends | "Understood. When's a good week after the season? I'll put it in the diary." |
| "We go through the association." | A state body has a preferred arrangement | "Can clubs choose their own supplier, or is it set centrally? Who looks after it at the association?" |
| "We don't have the budget." | Funds are tight, or spending comes from grants or sponsors | "How do you usually fund things like this? Some clubs look at it as a revenue item rather than a cost." |
How do you follow up a "not now" from a club?
Log the club's season dates, committee meeting dates and the reason, then follow a two-week cadence before setting a seasonal callback.
- Same day. Email a short note written so it can be forwarded to the committee.
- Two days later. Connect on LinkedIn with paid staff. For volunteers, the email is enough.
- End of week one. Call to check the note reached the right person.
- Early in week two. Send one practical resource, such as a pre-season checklist.
- End of week two. Last call before the break. If it's still "not now", set the callback for the first week of the planning window, and ask who will hold the role after the annual general meeting.
What counts as a qualified meeting with a club or venue?
A qualified meeting is with the person who decides, or the committee member who will present your offer, at a club or venue that fits, with a planning window open or a confirmed decision date, and an accepted invite with notes on the decision process. Agree the details with your sales team, as in how an outbound agency should define a qualified meeting.
Should you do sports club sales in-house or outsource it?
In-house works when you sell to a few clubs and your team knows the sport. Outsource when you need to cover many clubs, codes or states and calling would crowd out demos and onboarding. Callbacks need to land in the right week, months after the first call. In Nousu call data from 218,000+ dials into Australian businesses, 14% of dials reached a live person, so persistent, well-timed follow-up is what turns a list into meetings. See how we run outbound for sport and events, and our event marketing service if you are filling events rather than booking meetings.
How does Nousu compare?
Nousu Collective's senior callers all work in-house in Sydney. Pricing starts at $7,000 a month (ex GST), with the exact fee quoted after a 30-minute call. The initial term is 3 months, then rolling monthly, and first calls go out 2 weeks from sign-off. Most campaigns book about 8 qualified meetings a month once running, within a range of 6 to 20. From month two, an agreed meeting floor applies, with a credit for every meeting short. Callers log season dates, committee timing and decision makers for every club they reach. See pricing.
Frequently asked questions
How do you sell to sports clubs in Australia? Call in the off-season or pre-season, when clubs plan memberships, ticketing and suppliers. Find out early whether decisions sit with paid staff or a volunteer committee, and whether a state association sets the rules. Tie your opener to the club's season, and book the person who will decide or present your offer.
Who makes decisions at a community sporting club? Usually a volunteer committee led by the president, secretary and treasurer, which votes at regular meetings. One committee member often takes the lead on topics such as ticketing or sponsorship. Ask who that is, when the committee meets, and send information they can forward. Larger clubs have paid general managers and commercial staff.
When is the best time to call sporting clubs? During the off-season and pre-season, when clubs plan for the year ahead. Winter codes usually plan over summer and summer codes over winter. Avoid match days, finals and the weeks around the annual general meeting. For volunteers, an agreed early-evening callback within legal calling hours can work best.
Should you approach the state association or individual clubs? Ask first whether the association runs a preferred supplier arrangement or approves suppliers for member clubs. If it does, start with the association, because clubs may not be able to buy outside it. If clubs choose freely, call clubs directly and treat the association as a useful source of introductions.
How do you book venue sales meetings? Call the venue manager or event director during planning, never on an event day. Ask about their upcoming events, booking schedule and current suppliers, then offer a short meeting tied to a specific event or season. Venues plan months ahead, so log each event date and time your follow-up to it.
Can you call volunteer committee members in the evening? Yes, within the legal hours. Telemarketing calls are allowed until 8pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm on Saturdays, with no calls on Sundays or national public holidays. Agreeing a callback time first is the courteous approach. Use the contact details the club publishes for that role. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- Federal Register of Legislation, Telecommunications (Telemarketing and Research Calls) Industry Standard 2017 (calling hours, identification and calling line identification): https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2017L00323/asmade/2017-03-28/text/original/epub/OEBPS/document_1/document_1.html
- Do Not Call Register, Industry standards: https://www.donotcall.gov.au/industry/industry-overview/industry-standards
- Do Not Call Register, Your guide to the Do Not Call Register and Australia's telemarketing rules: https://www.donotcall.gov.au/media/1212/dncr-industry-guide.pdf
- Nousu call data: 218,000+ dials into Australian businesses, November 2024 to April 2026, published in Inside 200,000 Cold Calls.
Book a 30-minute call
Selling to clubs, venues or event organisers and need meetings timed to the season? Book a 30-minute call with Harry Constant, our founder.