Creating a sports association: What are the steps involved?

A sportsassociation is a group of volunteers united around a common project or sharing activities, but without seeking to make a profit from them.

Freedom of association has been guaranteed since the "Waldeck-Rousseau" law of July^1, 1901. There are almost 300,000 sports associations in France, including 180,000 affiliated to the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF).

Setting up a sports association is simple: you need to be at least two people, and define its purpose. It must have articles of association to clarify the association's purpose, its governing bodies and the person empowered to represent or bind the association in dealings with third parties.

Finally, it has a head office. An association's head office is the physical address where its administrative body is located, where board meetings and general meetings are held, and where archives are stored. This address must also be mentioned on your official documents, institutional and administrative communications.

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What are the different types of sports associations?

Association founders have a choice of three distinct statutes. The most commonly used is, without doubt, the "1901 law" association. This status requires a declaration to the administrative authorities in order to receive private or public donations and membership fees.

This is also essential for acquiring premises for the administration of the association, and the buildings strictly necessary for the accomplishment of its proposed purpose. It is possible to set up an association "de facto", without making an official declaration.

If you need to hire staff(coaches, trainers, secretaries, etc.), organize a competition or manage a sporting event, you need to apply for membership of a sports federation.

You must then comply with the affiliation criteria of the federation in question to obtain its approval.

Finally, the law also provides for the possibility of creating a sports company, in the case of a professional club, or for the organization of certain sporting events. Most often, these companies adopt the status ofEUSRL (Entreprise unipersonnelle sportive à responsabilité limitée) or SARL, d'EURLSASP (Société anonyme sportive professionnelle) or SAOS (Société anonyme à objet sportif).

How do you obtain Jeunesse et Sport accreditation?

Sports associations can obtain "Jeunesse et Sport" ministerial approval after 3 years in existence.

To do so, it must include certain statutory provisions guaranteeing the democratic operation of the association, the transparency of its management and equal access for women and men to its governing bodies. Since 2015, membership of a sports federation is equivalent to approval.

It enables the sports association to :

• Reduced social security contributions for employees
• Benefit from discounts on SACEM royalties
• To own a liquor outlet in the sports arena for 10 events
• Sports vouchers for families receiving back-to-school allowances
• Receive subsidies from the French National Center for Sports Development (CNDS)

What are the formalities involved in setting up an association?

Founding members of an association must download and complete a preliminary declaration of association creation, to be sent to the prefecture of the département corresponding to your association's head office.

Each association must have its own articles of association.

In particular, they must specify the name of the sports association, its purpose, its officers, its internal organization, the procedures for election, membership, dissolution, voting at ordinary general meetings and the resources of the sports association.

You must also open a dedicated bank account in the name of your association, and take out a civil liability policy and specific sports insurance.

Why choose a domiciliation service for your sports association?

Domiciliation companies enable every association to benefit from a number of services that play a decisive role in day-to-day operations. Firstly, you can choose your head office from a wide range of prestigious and prestigious addresses.

Domiciliation companies simplify the lives of association managers by offering useful day-to-day services: daily mail management, switchboard, administrative and legal assistance, meeting room rental, etc.

It's the ideal alternative to a manager's personal home, or to renting premises for an association.

It is preferable to choose a stable head office to guarantee business continuity.

With SeDomicilier, you can obtain your certificate of domiciliation in less than 5 minutes, in a 100% online process. What's more, all your services are then available in a personalized, secure virtual office!