Setting up your club in ClubPad (what it actually takes)

Open the app at my.clubpad.app, or on your phone, and start a club. You walk through six short screens and tap Create my club on the last one. You do not import a roster from anywhere; people join from a link afterwards.

Skip anything optional the first time. A logo, your own colour, a public page: none of that gets people on a court next week. Name, venue, how you get paid, who can join, and a first session. That's the club.

Same week is collectible. Two weeks later is a debt.

1. 1

   Brand your club

   Type the name people already use. If the group chat says Killiney Wednesdays, don't invent a more official version on night one.

   The same screen sets your Club homepage address, clubpad.app/clubs/your-name. Keep it short: it's what ends up on a poster. The app checks it's free as you type.

   A logo is optional. If you have one, tap Upload a logo; square works best. If you don't, skip it. The club still looks like a club, and you can add one any time in Admin → Theme. Colour isn't on this screen at all. It lives in Admin → Theme too: ClubPad green is free, your own colour is Club Plus. Tap Continue.

2. 2

   Where are you based?

   Choose the country under Where is your club based?. It isn't guessed for you, because it sets your currency and which plans are on sale where you are, and the step won't continue until you pick one. The timezone under What timezone do you play in? is detected from your phone; check it's right, because it's what makes session times show up correctly for everyone who books. Tap Continue.

3. 3

   Where do you play?

   A venue name and an address. Tap the address field and search; that's the bit that opens Maps when a member taps it later. One location is enough to publish a session. You can add more any time in Admin → Locations.

   Don't add a second court you don't actually book yet, and don't stall here looking for a photo. One decent night photo later beats a stock one now. Tap Continue.

4. 4

   Getting paid

   Everything here is optional and can be changed later, but it's worth two minutes. Add your Revolut handle, and a Revolut.me link if you have one so members can tap to pay. Pick your currency. Both Revolut and Cash are on by default; at least one has to stay on. The Payment reference prefix is the code that goes on every booking's reference; the default is fine.

   Then the deadline. Auto-cancel if unpaid is on by default, with 24 hours to pay after booking (48 and 72 are there too). ClubPad reminds the player halfway through that window and, if it passes, releases the spot to the next person on the waitlist. No deadline turns all of that off. I'd leave the deadline on for the first night. Same week is collectible. Two weeks later is a debt.

   These become the defaults for every new session; you can still change them per session. Cash and Revolut payments between members stay fee-free, on every plan, forever. Don't wait to "set up payments properly" before the first night. The same fivers you already collect, with a reference on each, is the whole job. Tap Continue.

5. 5

   Bring your players in

   Choose how new members join. I approve them means you see every join request first, invite links included. Join instantly means anyone with the link can book straight away. For a small club among friends, instant is fine. If you want to see each name first, keep approval on. You can change it later.

   There is no invite link on this screen yet. It arrives on the screen after you create the club. Tap Continue.

6. 6

   Set the house rules

   Four starter lines are already there: cancel 24 hours ahead, pay by the deadline, be on time, look after the courts. Tap any line to edit it, leave one blank to drop it, or tap Add a rule for another. Players see these when they join. This screen is not what makes the club real, so don't agonise over it.

   When the name, the venue and payments look right, tap Create my club. That's the last step. The club is live.

What happens next (this is the actual work)

The finale screen says Your club is live!. Under Share your club you'll find the invite link, with Share invite link and Copy invite link buttons. Copy it, but don't drop it in the group chat yet.

Tap Take me to my club to land in the admin Control Centre, then:

1. Post your first session. Time, venue, capacity, a booking deadline. Cap it at the courts you have. A session that exists is the reason to tap the link.
2. Message the five to ten people who play every week, directly, with the link. A link in a busy chat gets buried. A short note to the regulars gets you a club that exists.
3. Post the link to everyone else. Then welcome people as they join. If you turned approval on, don't leave them sitting there overnight.

Don't backfill old nights. History starts from this session.

The free plan runs the whole club. Once five people have joined, your public page can go live from Admin → Club Page. Club Plus (€25 a month per club) adds your own colour, unlimited mixer nights, the Mini-tournament format and a bigger public page. You don't need it tonight.