GoCardless partners with three new County FAs to strengthen grassroots game

LONDON, UK – 25 February 2026 – Bank payment company GoCardless has announced a sponsorship deal with Essex County FA, Lincolnshire FA and Manchester FA to support grassroots football across the country, taking the stress out of payments for 1,891 clubs. 

Football clubs within these FAs can now use GoCardless’ enhanced Direct Debit capabilities for recurring payments, perfect for regular collecting subs, and pair them with open banking payments to take one-off transactions, such as tournament registration fees and payment of red and yellow cards. 

The GoCardless platform will help clubs automate collections, gain greater visibility over their funds, and predict future income with ease – all while keeping costs down by swapping high card fees with GoCardless’s transparent pricing model. This means more money staying in the game, more financial certainty for clubs, and more opportunities for players to thrive. 

Catherine Birkett, Chief Financial Officer at GoCardless, said: “We believe County FAs play a vital role in their communities. They support football clubs in bringing people together, forging friendships, and developing the stars of the future. We’re proud to support these clubs and the people behind them, making it easier to do what they do best: inspire, include, and unite. By streamlining their payment processes, we’re gifting clubs, their staff and volunteers that precious time back to focus on what truly matters – making a positive impact both on and off the pitch.” 

Chris Evans, Essex County FA Communications & Partnerships Manager, explained: “The County Cups are a celebration of football across Essex, bringing together thousands of players, volunteers and supporters every year. Partnering with GoCardless, an organisation known for efficiency, reliability and innovation, helps us to enhance the experience for our community both on and off the pitch. We’re excited to work together throughout the 2025/26 season.”

Building on last year’s announcement of its first 15 County FA partnerships, which include associations such as Cheshire, Norfolk and Kent, GoCardless is continuing to deepen its support for grassroots football across England. Football clubs within these FAs can streamline finances by using GoCardless’ enhanced Direct Debit for recurring subs and open banking for one‑off transactions, reducing admin and cutting high card‑processing fees. 

The platform gives clubs better visibility over their cash flow, helps automate collections, and improves long‑term financial certainty so more money stays in the game. These partnerships reflect GoCardless’ growing commitment to grassroots sport, following expanded work with Kent FA and collaborations with Total Grassroots and Kelme to improve financial sustainability for local clubs

For more information on how GoCardless supports grassroots football clubs, please click here. 

 Notes to Editors 

Complete list of FA sponsorships include:

• Cambridgeshire FA 

• Cheshire FA

• Derbyshire FA 

• Essex FA

• Gloucestershire FA 

• Hampshire FA 

• Kent FA 

• Leicestershire & Rutland FA 

• Lincolnshire FA

• London FA

• Manchester FA

• Middlesex FA

• Norfolk FA 

• Northumberland FA

• Oxfordshire FA 

• Somerset FA 

• Surrey FA 

• Sussex FA 

For more information, contact: 

press@gocardless.com 

About GoCardless 

GoCardless is a global bank payment company. Nearly 100,000 businesses, from start-ups to household names, use GoCardless to collect and send payments through direct debit, real-time payments and open banking. 

GoCardless processes US$130bn+ of payments annually across 30+ countries; helping customers collect and send both recurring and one-off payments, without the chasing, stress or expensive fees. We use data and insights to improve payment success, reduce fraud and, with open banking connectivity to over 2,500 banks, help our customers make faster, more informed decisions. 

We are headquartered in the UK, with additional offices in Australia, France, Ireland, Latvia and the United States. For more information, please visit www.gocardless.com and follow us on LinkedIn @GoCardless. 

 © 2025 GoCardless Ltd. All Rights Reserved. GoCardless is a registered trademark of GoCardless Ltd in multiple countries. Third party trademarks mentioned above are owned by their respective companies. Unless explicitly identified as such, nothing in this press release should be construed to the contrary, or as an approval, endorsement or sponsorship by any third parties of GoCardless Ltd. or any aspect of this press release.