Sports-club glossary
The 50 terms we get asked about the most. No legalese, real examples and common pitfalls. Maintained by the OneClub team.
50 terms · 5 categories · updated in 2026
B
2 terms- Administrative
Basic Sports Club (Club Deportivo Básico)
Mid-tier legal structure between the Elementary Sports Club and the full Sports Association — designed for amateur clubs with multiple teams, employment contracts and stable federated participation.
- Administrative
Board of Directors (Junta Directiva)
Executive body of the club elected by the general meeting: runs day-to-day operations, executes general-meeting decisions and legally represents the club between meetings.
C
3 terms- Sports
Category Jump (Salto de Categoría)
Decision to have a player compete in an age category above their own due to sporting level, talent or physical size.
- Legal
Child Protection Officer (DPI)
Person designated by the club to ensure LOPIVI compliance: receives reports, triggers the protocol and trains staff on child protection.
- Tax
Club NIF (Spanish Tax ID)
Tax-authority unique identifier for the club. Starts with G, V or J depending on entity type and is essential to open a bank account, invoice and federate.
D
4 terms- Legal
Data Protection Officer (DPO)
GDPR figure: person appointed by an entity to oversee data-protection compliance. Mandatory in some cases, advisable in many others.
- Sports
Developmental vs Competitive Team
Distinction between teams whose main goal is player development (everyone plays similar minutes) and teams whose goal is to compete and win (selection by level).
- Billing & payments
Direct Debit (Domiciliación)
System where the club initiates collection from the member's bank account (with a previously signed mandate) instead of waiting for the member to transfer.
- Billing & payments
Direct Debit Batch (Remesa de Recibos)
Standardised file (pain.008.001.x format) with a SEPA debit batch the club sends to its bank to initiate the bulk collection of fees.
E
3 terms- Administrative
Elementary Sports Club (Club Deportivo Elemental)
Simplest legal structure to incorporate a sports club in Spain, designed for small associations with a handful of founding members practising a single sport.
- Billing & payments
Enrolment Fee (Cuota de Matrícula)
One-off payment at the start of the season covering player onboarding: kit, federation card, admin costs and, in some clubs, insurance.
- Legal
Explicit Consent
Unambiguous and specific declaration by a data subject authorising the processing of their data, required by GDPR for special categories (image, health) and high-impact decisions.
F
5 terms- Sports
Federated vs Amateur League
Distinction between official competitions organised by a federation (licence-required, strict regulation) and private or municipal leagues (more flexible but without official recognition).
- Sports
Federation Card (Ficha Federativa)
Federation document linking a specific player to a team and a season, enabling participation in official competitions.
- Sports
Federation Licence (Licencia Federativa)
Physical or digital document issued by the federation evidencing a player's link to a club and category for a given season.
- Administrative
Founding Member (Socio Fundador)
Person who signs the founding minutes of the club along with the other promoters, expressing the will to incorporate it.
- Administrative
Founding Minutes (Acta Fundacional)
Document recording the founding members' decision to incorporate the club, each member's identification data and the formal approval of the statutes.
G
2 terms- Legal
GDPR
EU Regulation 2016/679 governing personal data processing across the European Union. Applies to every sports club handling member, player or family data.
- Administrative
General Meeting (Asamblea General)
Supreme governing body of the club: gathers all members and decides on structural matters (accounts, board, statutes, dissolution).
L
4 terms- Billing & payments
Levy (Derrama)
Extraordinary and exceptional payment approved at the general meeting to cover a one-off expense not covered by ordinary fees.
- Tax
Ley 49/2002 (Public Utility Regime)
Special tax regime for non-profit entities declared of public utility or similar: drastically reduces corporate tax, grants donation deductions and exempts other taxes.
- Legal
LOPDGDD (Spanish Data Protection Act)
Spanish Organic Law 3/2018 that adapts GDPR to the Spanish legal system and develops digital rights. Coexists with GDPR: both apply simultaneously.
- Legal
LOPIVI
Spain's Organic Law 8/2021 for the integral protection of children and adolescents against violence: applies to EVERY sports club with minors, whether professional or volunteer.
M
5 terms- Tax
Modelo 111 (Spanish Income-Tax Withholdings)
Quarterly Spanish return for income-tax (IRPF) withholdings practised by the club on staff and professionals.
- Tax
Modelo 200 (Spanish Corporate Tax Return)
Annual corporate-tax return. A Spanish sports club must file it if its non-exempt revenue exceeds the thresholds or if it earns income subject to withholding.
- Tax
Modelo 303 (Quarterly Spanish VAT)
Quarterly Spanish VAT return. A sports club files it when it has taxable operations (sponsorship, rental, bar, merchandise) alongside exempt member fees.
- Tax
Modelo 347 (Operations Above €3,005.06)
Annual informational return for operations with third parties exceeding €3,005.06 (VAT included) during the financial year.
- Billing & payments
Monthly Fee (Cuota Mensual)
Periodic recurring fee (usually monthly) covering the member's participation in the activity: training, matches, facilities and included services.
P
3 terms- Tax
Partially Exempt Entities (IS)
Spanish corporate-tax regime applicable to non-profit sports clubs: exempts revenue from the core purpose but taxes ancillary economic activities.
- Legal
Personal Data Breach
Security incident affecting personal data: loss, theft, unauthorised access, accidental destruction. Triggers a 72-hour notification window to the AEPD if there is risk.
- Tax
Public Grant (Subvención Pública)
Monetary contribution without direct counterpart granted by public administrations to support the club's activity. Subject to documentary justification and specific taxation.
R
4 terms- Legal
Record of Processing Activities (RAT)
Internal document mandated by GDPR inventorying every personal-data processing activity the club performs: purpose, categories, legal basis and retention.
- Sports
Regional Federation (Federación Autonómica)
Private-law entity with delegated public functions organising a sport's modality in a Spanish region: competitions, licences, referee training.
- Administrative
Registry of Sports Entities (Registro de Entidades Deportivas)
Official regional registry where sports clubs are recorded to gain full legal personality and be able to federate teams, open bank accounts and access public grants.
- Sports
RFEF, RFAF, FEB, RFEBM (Spanish federation acronyms)
Acronyms of the main Spanish sports federations: national (RFEF, FEB, RFEBM) and regional (RFAF and similar). Structure sport organisation by modality.
S
8 terms- Billing & payments
SEPA
Single Euro Payments Area: European framework letting a Spanish sports club bill direct-debit fees across 36 countries with one file format and common rules.
- Billing & payments
SEPA Mandate
Authorisation signed by the member or account holder allowing the club to direct-debit recurring payments from their IBAN.
- Legal
Sex-Offender-Free Certificate (CDNS)
Document issued by Spain's Ministry of Justice attesting the absence of sex-offence convictions. LOPIVI requires it from ALL staff in habitual contact with minors.
- Legal
Special Categories of Data
Data considered sensitive by GDPR (art. 9) receiving reinforced protection: health, biometrics, ideology, orientation, religion, racial origin.
- Administrative
Sports Association (Asociación Deportiva)
Non-profit national-level association under Spain's Organic Law 1/2002, valid for sports purposes but not specifically regulated by regional sports law.
- Administrative
Sports Public Limited Company (SAD)
For-profit corporate form mandatory for clubs competing in Spain's top professional leagues — effectively a sports-sector public limited company.
- Administrative
Statutes (Estatutos)
The club's fundamental internal rules: defines name, purposes, domicile, governing bodies, member rights and duties, and financial regime.
- Billing & payments
Stripe Connect
Stripe product letting a SaaS platform connect the club's bank account and process payments directly on its behalf, without funds flowing through the platform's account.
Y
2 terms- Sports
Youth Academy (Cantera)
Set of formative teams in the club (age categories from the youngest to under-18) and, by extension, the model and investment the club dedicates to player development.
- Sports
Youth Age Categories (Spanish Football)
Age-based structure of Spanish grassroots football (and similar sports): classifies players by birth year into grouped categories to compete on an even footing.
Missing a term that's blocking you? Email hola@oneclubapp.com and we'll add it if it fits. We keep this glossary in sync with current Spanish regulation — if you spot a stale data point, write to us.