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See how TidyHQ stacks up against Wild Apricot, MemberPlanet, and others side by side.
Explore comparisonsThought Leadership
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Thought Leadership – 15 min read
Sport Bodies as Strategic Partners, Not Grant Recipients
A Harvard Business Review article asked companies to rethink nonprofits. We asked sport administrators in Australia and the UK: does this apply to us?
Thought Leadership – 14 min read
Signal-to-Noise in 2026: How Sports Organisations Fight Information Overload
Volunteers are drowning in communication. Here's why 'send more reminders' makes it worse and what actually works instead.
Thought Leadership – 10 min read
The McDonald's Model: Why Sporting Clubs Are Franchises (And Should Be Treated Like It)
Local governments don't fund every club directly. They use volunteers. That's a franchise model. Here's what changes when you recognise it.
Governance
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Governance – 19 min read
How US Sports Federations Manage State Associations and Local Clubs
US Soccer has 55 state associations and 10,000+ clubs. The three-tier federation model is uniquely American - and uniquely hard to manage.
Governance – 12 min read
What FIFA's Governance Research Tells Us About Every Federated Sport
FIFA commissioned CIES to study governance across 18 leagues and 141 clubs. The finding that matters most: there is no single model. And that changes everything.
Governance – 10 min read
What Good Governance Actually Means in Grassroots Sport
Governance in grassroots sport is not about bureaucracy. It is about whether anyone can see what is happening, question it, and trust the answer.
Club Operations
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Club Operations – 16 min read
Chapter Leader Onboarding: The 30-Day Checklist for New Volunteers
New chapter leaders inherit systems, relationships, and obligations they were never briefed on. This 30-day checklist fixes that.
Club Operations – 4 min read
Membership Coordinator: Renewals, Onboarding, and Keeping People
The membership coordinator is the front door of the club. Here is how to handle renewals, onboard new members, and track engagement.
Club Operations – 3 min read
Alumni Associations: Keeping Graduates Connected for Decades
Alumni associations manage relationships that span decades. Here is how to keep graduates engaged long after they leave campus.
Volunteer Management
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Volunteer Management – 20 min read
Multi-Chapter Nonprofit Management: From HQ Oversight to Local Autonomy
The tension between centralized control and chapter independence isn't a management problem - it's a structural one. Here's the framework to resolve it.
Volunteer Management – 18 min read
Chapter Management Software for US Professional Associations
48% of US associations use chapters to deliver local value. Most manage them with spreadsheets and email chains. Here's a better approach.
Volunteer Management – 8 min read
Why New Zealand's Sports Volunteers Are Walking Away
New Zealand's 7,500 community sport clubs run on volunteer labour worth over $1 billion a year. The volunteer pool has shrunk by 45% since 2019. Something has to give.
AI
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AI – 10 min read
Breaking Setup Inertia: How AI Suggestions Get Clubs From Zero to Configured in 30 Seconds
Clubs abandon setup when faced with 48 subscription decisions. AI-powered suggestions turn decision paralysis into done-in-30-seconds.
AI – 4 min read
AI and Volunteer Management: What Is Practical
AI will not replace volunteers. But it can handle the admin that makes volunteers quit. Here is what is practical right now.
AI – 4 min read
AI for Governing Bodies: Lead, Follow, or Get Left Behind
Your clubs are already using AI. The question for governing bodies is whether you lead the adoption or react to the chaos.
Guides
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Guides – 11 min read
The Handbook Every Grassroots Club Committee Needs on Their Shelf
Geoff Wilson's new Routledge handbook covers governance, game day, income and everything in between. Here's what club committees will actually use.
Guides – 14 min read
How to Write a Sponsorship Letter for Non-Profit Organisations
A sponsorship letter is not a begging letter. It is a business proposal. Here is how grant writers, commercial managers, and sponsorship advisors would actually write one.
Guides – 18 min read
Why Off-Field Operations Are the Missing Piece in Sports Federation Software
Sports tech focuses on registrations and fixtures. But clubs fold because of governance failures, not fixture problems. That gap matters.
Comparisons
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Comparisons – 3 min read
TidyHQ vs Sport80: Membership System vs Governance Platform
Sport80 handles registration and membership well. TidyHQ handles governance execution. They solve different problems.
Comparisons – 3 min read
TidyHQ vs Membes: Both Australian, Very Different
Both Australian-built. Both integrate with Xero. But TidyHQ and Membes serve different sized organisations at very different price points.
Comparisons – 4 min read
TidyHQ vs GameDay: Why You Probably Need Both
GameDay runs your competition. TidyHQ runs your organisation. Here is why they are complementary, not competing.
UK Sport
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UK Sport – 14 min read
Your Membership Database Just Disappeared. Now What?
Your membership database just disappeared. Your website's been hacked. Your treasurer's laptop died with the only copy of the accounts. Here's how to make sure that scenario stays hypothetical.
UK Sport – 11 min read
What Happens to Your Sport When Everything Goes Wrong?
UK Sport's Code for Sports Governance now requires business continuity plans. Most sports organisations don't have one. Here's how to build yours without hiring a consultant.
UK Sport – 4 min read
What UK Sports Bodies Can Learn from Australian Governance
Australia has been through the governance technology journey. Here is what worked, what did not, and what UK sport can shortcut.
Product
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Product – 19 min read
Best Chapter Management Software (2026): An Honest Comparison
An honest comparison of 8 chapter management platforms - what each does best, who it's built for, and where it falls short.
Product – 10 min read
Magic Links: One-Click Acknowledgements Without the Login Friction
95%+ of announcements don't need discussion. They need one thing: confirmation the club received it. Here's how to make that frictionless.
Product – 9 min read
Role-Based Filtering: Why 'My Role' Should Be the Default View
Volunteers don't need to see everything. They need to see what matters to them. Here's why role-based filtering changes club engagement completely.
Events
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Events – 4 min read
The Event Coordinator's Playbook
You have been asked to organise the club event. Here is how to handle registration, ticketing, catering, and check-in without a meltdown.
Events – 4 min read
How to Plan Club Events That People Actually Attend
Most club events fail because of logistics, not the idea. Fix the friction and attendance follows.
Events – 7 min read
Events, Ticketing, and RSVPs: What Clubs Actually Need
You don't need Eventbrite's feature set. You need something tied to your membership data that doesn't eat your sausage sizzle profits.
Integrations
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Integrations – 3 min read
TidyHQ + Google Workspace: Connecting Your Club's Tools
Most clubs already use Google Workspace. Here is how to connect it with TidyHQ for a joined-up experience.
Integrations – 3 min read
TidyHQ + Zapier: Automate Your Club's Workflows
Connect TidyHQ to 5,000+ apps with Zapier. Automate new member notifications, event reminders, and data sync without code.
Integrations – 3 min read
TidyHQ + Mailchimp: Better Email Campaigns for Clubs
Sync your TidyHQ member data to Mailchimp for targeted email campaigns. Keep your lists current automatically.
Sport-Specific
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Sport-Specific – 9 min read
Martial Arts Tournament Planning Guide for Community Schools
A complete operational guide to planning a martial arts tournament - venue setup, bracket management, official coordination, safety protocols, and the weeks-of preparation that turns a gym into a competition venue.
Sport-Specific – 8 min read
Tournament Day at Your Community Martial Arts School
The mats are down, the brackets are posted, and your students are warming up in the hallway. Here's how to run a martial arts tournament that does justice to months of training and keeps families engaged with your school.
Sport-Specific – 6 min read
Pickleball Tournament Planning Guide for Community Clubs
A complete operational guide to planning a pickleball tournament - court setup, bracket management, registration logistics, and the weeks-of preparation that makes your club's event the one everyone wants to enter.
Grants & Funding
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Grants & Funding – 15 min read
Sports Club Grants in Alaska & Hawaii: Funding Guide
Remote communities, limited infrastructure, and unique cultural contexts make grant funding in Alaska and Hawaii different from anywhere else in the US. Here's what's available.
Grants & Funding – 15 min read
Sports Club Grants in the Great Plains: Funding Guide
Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota have smaller grant pools - but far less competition. Here's where to find funding for youth sports clubs in the Plains states.
Grants & Funding – 13 min read
Sports Club Grants in the Pacific Northwest: Funding Guide
Oregon and Washington have strong state recreation programs and a philanthropic culture that favors youth sports - especially clubs that serve underserved communities.
Recently published
Multi-Chapter Nonprofit Management: From HQ Oversight to Local Autonomy
The tension between centralized control and chapter independence isn't a management problem - it's a structural one. Here's the framework to resolve it.
How US Sports Federations Manage State Associations and Local Clubs
US Soccer has 55 state associations and 10,000+ clubs. The three-tier federation model is uniquely American - and uniquely hard to manage.
Your Membership Database Just Disappeared. Now What?
Your membership database just disappeared. Your website's been hacked. Your treasurer's laptop died with the only copy of the accounts. Here's how to make sure that scenario stays hypothetical.
Chapter Management Software for US Professional Associations
48% of US associations use chapters to deliver local value. Most manage them with spreadsheets and email chains. Here's a better approach.
The Handbook Every Grassroots Club Committee Needs on Their Shelf
Geoff Wilson's new Routledge handbook covers governance, game day, income and everything in between. Here's what club committees will actually use.
What FIFA's Governance Research Tells Us About Every Federated Sport
FIFA commissioned CIES to study governance across 18 leagues and 141 clubs. The finding that matters most: there is no single model. And that changes everything.