Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are we implementing a new membership system?

It is important that we innovate to ensure we continue to meet the needs of an increasingly digitalised community. A key benefit of the new membership system is it provides a quick and simple online registration and payment experience for all participants.

It is also our desire to ease the burden on our volunteers. This system shifts the management of member information from paper to digital while removing the inconvenience and risk of collecting the national body’s affiliation and insurance fees.

And, for those who play multiple competitions it removes the duplication of affiliation fees. Currently, every time a player plays in a competition a portion of those fees contribute to the administration of the sport and the cost of insurance. The new system is a one-off payment making it cheaper for those who play regularly.

How much are membership fees and who pays them?

All participants will pay $22.00 a year for membership. This fee includes GST, transaction fees and the cost of insurance.

How do I pay my membership?

The payment process is completely online via the MySideline system and is payable the first time a participant registers into a competition after 1 July each year.

I’ve never registered online before; how do I do that?

You will need to create an NRL account and a profile to create your unique ID in MySideline. Instructions on how to do this can be found here. MySideline Resources and Support - Touch Football Australia.

What is a Unique ID?

A unique ID is the account within MySideline that links to each individual user profile. It is your or your child’s unique identifier.

What happens if I register and play in multiple competitions within the same season/year?

The membership is an annual membership running from 1 July – 30 June each year.

During this 12-month period, a participant can register and play in as many competitions as they choose.

Please keep in mind that you will still need to pay local competition fees for each of these competitions.

If I have paid my membership and stop playing, will I get a refund?

Regardless of how many games you have played once you have registered and paid your membership through MySideline you will not be eligible for a refund.

How will I know when I need to pay the fee again?

Your membership expires on 30 June each year. When you register into your first competition after 1 July your membership will be due again.

It will appear automatically on your MySideline profile.

Why are junior and senior fees the same?

Since our sport was founded in 1968 senior participation has been higher than junior participation and senior fees have been used to subsidise junior players.

With participation balancing out in recent years, the decision was made to equalise the fee to make it cheaper for everyone to play the sport.

Will this increase my cost to participate?

Some people may experience a slight increase but for most people it will be the same or even cheaper. Junior players who play only once a year may see an increase but those who play in multiple competitions should see a decrease.

The current affiliation fees have previously been built into your competition costs so you should now pay less at your local competition.

Touch football remains one of cheapest sports to play.

Can I use state government sports vouchers to pay for my membership?

No, vouchers for your membership component can’t be used at this stage.

Vouchers can still be used for your local competition expenses which represents better value for families.

Can I pay my national membership and local competition fees in the same transaction?

Yes, subject to how your competition is managed, your national membership can be paid alongside your competition fees in one single transaction. 

If your competition is managed this way, then you may also be able to use your government voucher to pay for your entire fee.

Do referees or coaches need to pay?

While non-playing referees and coaches are required to register via MySideline there is no cost.

If you play and referee or coach, you will also be required to register as a playing member.

What are the prerequisites for affiliation now?

TFA will update the Affiliate Regulations to reflect the changes prior to 1 July this year.

The new regulations will include the mandatory use of MySideline for registration to ensure membership is correctly captured.

Competitions failing to use MySideline will be considered unaffiliated and will lose access to the benefits of membership.

We don’t use MySideline or take online registrations. What do we do now?

We encourage you to reach out to your state office so we can arrange training and support to make the transition to MySideline.

Useful information can be found here - MySideline Resources and Support - Touch Football Australia.

How will affiliates know which players are financial?

Players will not be able to complete the registration process into your competition if they are not a member so they won’t appear in a team’s registration or on scorecards.

Affiliate administrators can view each team to see how many individuals are registered in each team.

A team needs a minimum of eight (8) players in order for the team to appear in the fixturing system.

What happens if affiliates let non-members or teams of non-members participate?

Anyone that takes the field without being a member is uninsured. If an affiliate is found to be knowingly allowing non-members to play they may be held liable in the event of injury.

The updated Affiliate Regulations will require all players to be national members as a prerequisite for retaining affiliation status with the sport.

Is state affiliation included in the membership?

No, if you live or play outside of NSW and QLD a state membership of $20 is also applicable the first time you register after 1 July. This replaces the former team-based state affiliation fee.

NSW and Queensland state affiliation will still be managed manually as a team-based affiliation fee. For details on how this will be handled, contact NSWTA or QTF.

We have local sponsors, committee members or life members that do not pay to play. Do they need to be a member?

Yes, the national membership is applicable to all participants.

Any benefits to local sponsors, committee members, life members or others can be applied to local competition fees at each competition’s discretion.

Is event affiliation for one-off events changing?

Yes and no, the process for one-off event affiliation will change slightly.

There will be a social player membership category created to manage these types of competitions but there will be no individual cost for this membership category.

Organisations running these events will be required to complete the existing event affiliation that is already in place.

Representative events such as State Cups won't change - players will have to be a member to be able to play and event specific eligibility will still apply.