Free League Budget Calculator
Enter your fee, how many teams you expect, and what each game costs. See how many teams you need to break even, what the season clears at 75% and full sign-up, and the lowest fee that covers your costs.
Start with your numbersHow the numbers work
Add up the fixed costs
Insurance, league software, and equipment cost the same however many teams sign up, so every team shares them.
Work out each team’s game costs
Every game has two teams, so a team carries half the venue and officials cost of each game it plays.
Add a contingency
Both costs go up by your contingency, so a broken net or a makeup game does not sink the budget.
Divide and round up
Your fixed costs divided by what each fee leaves after that team’s game costs is the number of teams you need. The lowest fee that works is a team’s game costs plus its share of the fixed costs.
For example
Say you charge $850 a team and expect 8 teams playing 8 games each, with $75 of venue time and $50 of officials per game. Each team carries 4 games’ worth of costs, $500, or $575 with a 15% contingency. Insurance, software, and equipment of $1,250 become $1,437.50. Each fee leaves $275 after the team’s game costs, and $1,437.50 divided by $275 is 5.2, so you need 6 teams to break even.
Questions
How do I work out how many teams I need to break even?
Add up your fixed season costs, then work out what each team adds in game costs: its share of venue time and officials. Divide the fixed costs by what each fee leaves after those game costs, and round up. The calculator does this for you, with a contingency on top.
How much should I charge per team?
Enough to cover your costs at the sign-up you can count on, not just a full league. The calculator shows the lowest fee that covers the season if every team signs up and if only 75% do, with a per-player figure for the 75% case.
What does the contingency cover?
Costs you did not plan for, like replacing equipment or paying for a makeup game. Our guide to starting a league suggests 15%; change it to suit your league.
How are game costs counted?
Each game involves two teams, so a season has teams times games per team divided by two games. Venue and officials are charged per game, and each team carries half of every game it plays.
Should I include playoffs?
If your venue and officials charge for playoff games, add that cost to insurance, software and equipment so every team’s fee covers it.
Is anything I enter saved or sent anywhere?
No. The calculations run in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent to LeagueArc.
Keep reading
- Guide · 13 min read Sports League Financial Management
- Guide · 16 min read How to Start a Sports League
- Free tool Free League Schedule Maker
- Feature Registration and Payments
Comparing league software? LeagueArc vs TeamSnap vs SportsEngine vs LeagueApps vs Blue Sombrero All comparisons
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