Champion Soccer requesting money

[H.L]

Hi

 

I was recently part of a 6-a-side football team who played in a league run by Champion Soccer.

 

Before the start of the latest season of this league, I contacted them to withdraw my team from the league because we did not have enough players to carry on.

 

However, I have now received an invoice asking for £104 saying that we owe them a £25 registration fee and a £62 double match fee for not fulfilling a fixture.

 

Upon contacting them again to query this and explaining that I had not signed the registration form at the end of the previous season to keep the team going, I was told that another member of my team had signed the form and had in effect "registered the team". On the form, there is a section saying something along the lines of the following: "I accept full responsibility to fulfill my teams fixtures until are team is replaced by another"

 

Does this mean that the team is 100% committed to playing these fixtures and therefore, to pay the debt that Champion Soccer keep adding to?

 

Thanks for any responses

[Conniff]

I've moved you into the legal forums.

 

Do you know who the signatory is and does he have the permission from the club to speak for them?

[H.L]

Cool, thanks.

 

I do know who's signature it is and as far as I know they did have permission from the rest of the team.

 

Key points that I have found out though, are;

 

Champion Soccer state that in order to withdraw from the league, a team needs to let them know before the fixtures for the upcoming season are released. The team missed the deadline for that, but after informing CS of our withdrawal, a revised list of fixtures was released, which did still include the team, but with some changes. So, does this clear us, because we did, in effect, withdraw before the final fixtures were released?

 

Also, CS are asking for a registration fee. As we have not paid it, does that not mean that our registration is incomplete, despite my team-mate having signed the form?

 

Thanks for your reply.

[steampowered]

I can't find the T&Cs online, but I would imagine that signing the registration form makes you are liable for the registration fee (or, if the form was signed without authority from all the members, the person who signed it will be liable for all of the registration fees).

 

Presumably the form says something about what happens if you withdraw after the fixtures are released?

 

I'm not sure about the double match fee though. Their website (http://www.championsoccer.co.uk/index.php?target=news&task=onenews&id=215) indicates that this fee is only charged if you do not contact them. In this case you did contact them. There might be a single fee but it shouldn't be a double fee.

[bizzisguy]

I would have thought double match fee was because they are effectively being charged for the pitch rental which normally would be split across both teams, it is therefore double as it would not be fair to make the other team pay for half the pitch fee for a game they turned up at but their opponents didn't?

[steampowered]

Yes I can definitely see the logic of that, but the website says there is no double match fee if you contact them in advance to tell them you aren't coming.

 

The website says 'this is because WE WANT YOU TO CALL US, so that we can call your opposition and stop them having a wasted journey !!! ... Furthermore, if your team does turn up to find no opposition then your referees and coordinator will do all they can to set up a friendly for you '

[CH1993]

Anything come of this? I have received a letter saying they will take me to court.

 

Any help would be great, thanks

 

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?470686-Champion-soccer-debt&p=4958096#post4958096