Chapter 3

Getting set up with Xero

See which Xero plan is the best fit, get set up, how to convert from another solution, and use Xero for everyday admin.

An illustration of a group of female small business owners and female football players standing together

Choose the right plan for your club

Starting with the right plan starts you on the path to success, but what plan does your club need? If your football club sends out invoices for your annual subs, you’ll need the Standard plan which includes sending many invoices and adding a payment service to them. Research has shown that invoices with an online payment service results in faster payment.

All Xero pricing plans (Xero website)

Football clubs qualify for a 25% discount on their subscription. And you can try it for free first.

Start a free trial, then get the club discount

Get set up

Once you’ve chosen the right plan for your club, it’s time to set up Xero the right way. Getting set up right makes everything easier, and, like many things, it’s all in the preparation.

Convert to Xero from another accounting solution

If you currently use another accounting solution, see how to convert your data to Xero. It can be helpful to consult with your accountant before you begin.

Set up bank feeds

Connect your bank to get your bank transactions automatically imported into Xero.

If you find there’s a gap in your transactions between when you started on Xero and when the bank feeds begin, then manually import bank statements . It's super easy to import them from your online banking.

Set up your organisation

You’ll find these settings in the dropdown menu on the top left -hand side of the screen, under your club name.

Invoice settings

You can customise your invoices and set up payment services.

Customise your invoices to customise the look of invoices, purchase orders and more

Add payment services

Set up automatic reminders for invoices

Email settings

Set a reply-to email address, personalise your emails, and set up email templates.

Payroll settings

If your club is using Xero Payroll, you can add and check your payroll settings.

If you wish, you can become Xero Payroll Certified. This is a learning experience that helps you become proficient and confident with Xero Payroll’s features. It covers getting started with Xero Payroll, setting up employees for payroll, and completing regular and advanced payroll tasks.

Xero Payroll certification (Xero Central learning)

Expense settings

Expense settings is where you set up users, enable receipt analysis, and set the accounts you want to use for expense and mileage claims. The standard plan comes with one expenses user included.

Custom contact links

Create custom links to transfer data from Xero contacts to other systems, such as a customer relationship management (CRM) software, instantly. Link Xero contacts to a CRM or other system (help article)

Nice work, your club is now set up on Xero! Let's get started with the fun stuff.

Use Xero every day

Here are a few simple but effective ways you can get up and running using Xero day to day. Join us in one of our live webinars, read help articles, take a course, or watch YouTube videos.

Product and service items

Set up the items (products and services) you provide to save time on data entry. Setting up untracked inventory items for things your club regularly supplies or purchases can help you save time when entering your sales invoices, bills received, and other types of transactions later on.

Learn more about product and service items (help article)

Invoicing and billing

Once products and services are set up, you can use them in your club’s invoices and bills when recording sales (invoices) and purchases (bills). Entering invoices and bills helps to get an accurate view of your club's cash flow.

Getting started guides to invoicing and billing at Xero Central

Courses and learning about invoicing and billing at Xero Central

Bank reconciliation

Xero makes reconciling bank statements quick and easy by suggesting matches for each statement line to an existing transaction in Xero. You can also create a transaction during the reconciliation process.

GST

Once all your transactions are recorded in Xero, you can run and file your GST return. You can even file directly with Inland Revenue if myIR is set up for your club.

Reports

Take a look at some of the reports which will help you manage your clubs daily activities. Think about which reports your accountant and/or advisor will want to see and how often; and what monthly and year-end reports you need to produce.

Contacts

Set up and manage your contacts (members and suppliers) is key to having everything run smoothly.

Budget manager

Does your club have a budget? There is the old adage, you can’t manage what you don’t measure. Having a budget can help your club avoid financial difficulties.

Using Xero for football club accounts and finances

Xero can help improve your club's financial health and help grow the game. Here’s how to use Xero for your club finances.

  1. Managing football club finances

    Healthy finances help your club run smoothly and boost performance. Xero can help with better numbers off the field.

  2. Xero for club finances

    Football club admin includes managing the income, outgoings, cash flow, budget and payroll. Explore ways Xero can help.

  3. Getting set up

    See which Xero plan is the best fit, get set up, how to convert from another solution, and use Xero for everyday admin.

  4. Grants and funding

    A growing number of grants, loans, and other types of funding are available to football clubs.

  5. More ways to learn

    Head to Xero Central for ongoing support and more learning, or watch videos on the Xero YouTube channel.

Start using Xero for free

Access Xero features for 30 days, then decide which plan best suits your business.