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The clubhouse: the centrepiece of the sports club

Clubhouse, sports centre or club home: every region prefers a different name for the most important building in a sports club. Clubhouses are an integral part of a club organisation. We provide you with a detailed insight into clubhouses in amateur sport.

spized | Club management

January 9, 2025 |

Whats’ on this page

1. The clubhouse: a favourite meeting place for members

2. Clubhouse: a multifunctional and flexible building

2.1 The club restaurant: What changes when catering is run in the clubhouse?

2.2 Rent out the clubhouse and generate additional income

2.3 Duty to ensure public safety - safety requirements of the clubhouse

3. This is what a clubhouse filled with life looks like

The clubhouse: a favourite meeting place for members

The clubhouse is a place that reflects the entire life of the club and is therefore the most popular meeting place for members. Events such as team dinners, meetings and Christmas parties can take place in the clubhouse. Parents and players come together here during training and competitions and spend quality time together. A good clubhouse creates identification and binds the members to the club. In the following article, we give you a detailed insight into the clubhouse and explain interesting facts about the centrepiece of club life.

Clubhouse: a multifunctional and flexible building

A clubhouse does not necessarily have to be similar to a pub or restaurant. It is usually a multifunctional building that can also include showers, changing rooms or technical rooms for sports equipment. Offices or meeting rooms can also be part of the clubhouse. As a general rule, the larger and more functional the clubhouse, the higher the requirements and demands of the club and the administration.

The clubhouse does not run itself. It needs someone to take care of all the administrative tasks. Ideally, this should not be a board member, as such a position already entails sufficient responsibility. A caretaker appointed by the board or elected by the members should, for example, carry out minor repairs, recognise and rectify safety defects and carry out cleaning work. It is also advisable to draw up some house rules so that members and guests behave accordingly. A good example of this is to prohibit members from bringing their own drinks if the clubhouse serves drinks.

The club restaurant: What changes when catering is run in the clubhouse?

As soon as the clubhouse constitutes a catering establishment, the restaurant is subject to the German Restaurant Act (GastG). Irrespective of the commercial operation, most of the provisions of this law also apply to club restaurants. However, the legislator also allows some relaxation in this area with regard to clubs. The situation is different if the clubhouse is leased. The legislator obliges the tenant to comply with the statutory regulations almost without restrictions.

Rent out the clubhouse and generate additional income

Many clubhouses have rooms that are suitable for events such as birthdays, company events or parties. Both members and non-members often approach the club to hire rooms for various occasions. These are, of course, welcome sources of income. Ideally, the association should have a written contract that clearly regulates the use and return of the premises. The contents of such a contract can be

Number of persons
Utilisation fee
Amount of the deposit
Obligation to obtain the necessary authorisations (GEMA, police, public order office)
General rules of behaviour with regard to noise, open fire, smoking, pyrotechnics
Cancellation regulations
Liability issues in the event of personal injury or damage to property
Return conditions such as cleaning

Duty to ensure public safety - safety requirements of the clubhouse

The operation of the clubhouse requires safety measures that should not be treated carelessly. Anyone who makes a property or building accessible to third parties must also ensure that people do not suffer any damage due to foreseeable dangers. Dangers that need to be eliminated or warned of are those that are not immediately recognisable to the user. The duty to maintain road safety must also be observed towards club members. Of course, the clubhouse or club facilities do not have to be secured against remotely conceivable cases of damage. However, precautions must be taken to prevent damage from foreseeable hazards. Such precautions may include

Gritting, cleaning and clearing obligations
Adequate lighting in corridors, staircases and walkways
Eliminate tripping hazards
Stable chairs, tables and stands
Sports equipment free of defects
Marking and securing construction sites
Securing dangerous objects, machines and liquids
Checking the condition of trees, bushes and branches

If the clubhouse is rented out to third parties, the tenants must also take care of the duty to ensure public safety. The club is only liable for the proper condition of the rented property. This means that the club is responsible for the proper functioning of the seating and lighting.

This is what a clubhouse filled with life looks like

Clubhouses are an integral part of the sports world. They belong to every amateur club and are an elementary component of club life. We are happy to give you an insight into who fills your clubhouse with life.

The landlords: The landlords are often a married couple who have been running the place for 20 years. They get to know everything about the club and are helpful people. They'll even call you a taxi in the evening if you've been drinking too much. They'll also put your drinks on a tab if you're short of cash at the end of the month. The landlords are pure identification and reflect the face of the club for many people. In short: nothing works without the landlords!

The regulars: When the first team plays, they are there to open the match with a cold beer. Whatever the weather. After the game, they discuss the substitutions and substitutions, just like the professionals. By the way: the regulars also remember who scored the decisive goal in the 1997 cup final for the B-youth team!

The storymakers: Former players who have experienced everything in their amateur careers and recount the promotion to the Kreisliga B as if it had been a Champions League victory. Cup victories and dramatic relegation matches are of course also part of the story. The regulars and the landlord and landlady can now sing along to the stories.

The team: Whether after training or after the game, a few drinks in a cosy atmosphere are a must. One or two of them might even give up training and matches altogether. After strong performances on the pitch, the coaches also like to pop a pint.

The couple: He has been a club member for 50 years and enjoys his free time as a newly retired person. She is also retired and has been by his side for over 50 years. Both come once or twice a week and always order the same dish.

The ‘second’ men: The second men are often the team coaches who form the heart of the team structure. After the game, the first thing they do is have a cold beer to help with the frustration or to celebrate the victory - regardless of how the team played. The later it gets in the evening, the more generous the carers become towards the other guests.

The wise old man: he still knows the grandfathers of today's coaches and players and played on pitches that no longer exist. He remembers what the atmosphere was like in derby matches and talks about the club's old sporting greats. Even the storymaker pauses at a moment like this and nods in agreement.

The pub gamblers: Skat, Doppelkopf or Rummy - every Friday, the gamblers meet in the clubhouse to play cards together over a beer or two.

The family: The family live right next to the football pitch and come regularly with their two children. They don't necessarily have anything to do with the sport, but enjoy the flair of the club and the children like to eat schnitzel with chips.