The big question of the season appears to be along the lines of We are bringing our entire club to your tournament and we want a discount. There are some variations to that statement, some saying they are going to bat for your tournament with their club, board, etc., but the bottom line is they are looking for a discount.
On the surface, this sounds like a good deal for the tournament. You get a volume number of teams and all you need to do is give them a discount. But, as always, we are going to examine this issue just a little bit more in-depth.
Our advice: Don’t do discounts. Once you do, the discount price is the real price of your tournament and other teams will find out.
Firstly, is price the ONLY thing that is determining the club’s decision to play in your tournament? If so, why is this? Pass on any club that makes this all about price. If you are a quality event that meets the club’s development and competition goals, the club will want to play in your tournament. After all, an average tournament only costs each player about $20-$35 in fees.
Secondly, there are hidden costs with accepting clubs that have nothing to do with the tournament fee. Will you now have excessive coaching conflicts? Will they now demand reduced rates from your hotels, asking for a coaches’ room for free. If you are a competitive tournament, what will their B-teams do to your brackets and overall reputation? What if a team pulls out; will they find a replacement for you?
Club-block applications are not going away, so you must come up with a policy to deal with them. At minimum, you should post your policy in your FAQ section. You may also want to accept them with terms and conditions in place. A couple of these might be that coaching conflicts are theirs to resolve and that if a team in a club block pulls out, the club is penalized with a bond fee. Whatever your policy, make the club own their participation in your tournament as much as you do.