Customer Success Story: Legends FC
From Outdated to Ahead of the Game: Legends FC's Journey to Becoming a Forward-Thinking Organization
What does it take to successfully manage 6,000 athletes across 300+ teams in 10 regions? Ask Legends FC, and they'll tell you it's not just about passion and dedication (although those are essential). It's about having the right systems in place to turn complete chaos into seamless operations.
It wasn’t always easy for them. Once plagued by multiple systems that wouldn’t integrate and stacks of paper checks and registration documents to dig through, the team at Legends spent countless hours manually inputting data and hoping that everything was accounted for. The margin for error was high.
Then, they tagged in PlayMetrics.
Here's the story of how one strategic technology decision transformed Legends FC from overwhelmed to optimized, setting a new standard for youth soccer club management in California.
CHALLENGE - When More Tools Mean More Problems
Since joining the organization in 2017 as a coach and admin support, Taylar Sklar-O’Sullivan has worn many hats - giving her a unique view into the operational challenges Legends FC faced. The main one? Their patchwork of systems was creating more work, not less.
The Paper Trail Nightmare
“During the registration process, we were collecting handwritten checks or cash. It made it difficult to track payments and who was past due,” said Sklar-O’Sullivan. “We also were handling physical copies of birth certificates and other legal documents, which was an added liability for us. Plus, all registrations and player evaluations were done on paper, so if we misplaced forms before entering them into the system, it was a huge headache.”
The Integration Gap
In addition to the paper chaos, the Legends FC team was juggling multiple software systems, and none of them were integrated. They were using:
- One platform for collecting registrations
- Another to track player data
- A third for communicating with families
- Endless file folders - both physical and digital - holding sensitive information
“Nothing was speaking to each other,” Sklar-O’Sullivan explained. “Information had to be manually transferred from emails, sheets, and texts, making it more likely that something would get overlooked or lost in translation.”
The Technology Problem
In a crowded market of software vendors promising to solve every youth sports management problem, Taylar and the team quickly realized none could deliver. The so-called “all-in-one” platforms left out critical pieces, while others couldn’t even meet the club’s basic needs because their technology was outdated.
“Making sure our rosters were accurate for different events and collecting money were two things I was spending the most time on previously,” said Sklar-O’Sullivan. “That and logging into a different app to communicate with families and monitor conversations.”
SOLUTION - Finding Calm Among the Chaos
During the height of COVID - when frustration at the club was at its peak - a well-timed Social Media ad caught Taylar’s boss, CEO Josh Hodges, at just the right moment. He scheduled a demo for them with the PlayMetrics team. Their first impression? “Wow, this solves a lot of problems right now that could help us communicate more effectively to our entire membership and organization. In addition, this would allow us the ability to support every aspect of our operations and streamline a more efficient way to manage everything.”
Implementation, Impact, and Results
When asked how long it took for the team to see value after making the switch, Taylar’s response was instantaneous. “Immediate! It was immediate value. I could see who’s paid and who hasn’t, who’s on the team and who hasn’t accepted yet.”
The communication improvements were equally dramatic. Taylar was excited to see that she no longer had to copy email addresses and send messages one by one. With PlayMetrics, she could reach the entire club in a fraction of the time it took previously.
Field scheduling quickly stood out as another major win. “Being able to have the fields in one spot and be able to see where everybody is on any given day. Game-changer!”
But perhaps the biggest benefit was the fact that they could officially retire the outdated systems that were holding them back in favor of one single software. According to Taylar, this consolidation of tools to PlayMetrics led to 80% time savings that just couldn’t be found anywhere else.
CLUB UPDATE - A New Standard of Operations
“PlayMetrics really helped professionalize our business. It looks good, feels good. It’s just easier to use than anything else out there.”
Today, Taylar manages everything in her PlayMetrics app. With one click, she can make the adjustments she needs, shifting players’ statuses and sending communications to those who are behind schedule. “The beauty of having one operating system is that we can all work in it without having to be in the same location,” she says.
Thinking Ahead
Taylar and her team at Legends are looking forward to their future with PlayMetrics and the continued innovations to the platform. “It’s clear to us that PlayMetrics is driven to continue providing a complete, all-in-one platform for clubs. We see that with each new feature launch or product update that brings new ways to use the software. It’s exciting to be with them at the forefront of progress.”