Launch of Adult Player Registration

From the 2024/25 season, all players, in all formats of the game (including non-contact from April 2025), will be required to register themselves annually to play rugby within RFU member clubs.

Adult Player Registration will go live from 16 July 2024.

From this date, adult players will be able to log into the Game Management System (GMS)(opens in a new tab) to register themselves to play.

If your players are currently registered to play, they will already have a GMS account. You can help them verify their email address before they register to play to make it easier for them to do this next season. Support for players that do not have GMS accounts can be found in the next section of this update.

Further support with Adult Player Registration can be found on Community Rugby Help.

HOW TO GET YOUR CLUB READY FOR ADULT PLAYER REGISTRATION

Adult Player Registration is a change from the current process – whereby clubs register players on their behalf – that brings rugby union in line with the majority of other Unions and other sports where this is common practice.

Note: Players will not be able to complete registrations until Adult Player Registration goes live from 16 July 2024.

Players with an existing GMS account

Players that have been registered to play in the past will already have an existing GMS account. These players need to log into their account and follow the steps shown in this video(opens in a new tab) and outlined below:

  1. Log into GMS here(opens in a new tab).
    • If you were registered at a club in a previous season, you will have a GMS account but if you cannot log in:
      • If you know the email address your GMS account is registered to, but not your password, click ‘Forgot password?’, and enter your email address.
      • If you do not know the email address your GMS account is registered to, contact your Adult (Male / Female) Club Registrar who should be able to look up your email in GMS and provide it to you.
  2. Click the ‘Renew Registration’  button
  3. Review the details of your Club Registration form
  4. Click ‘Save’

Players that do not have a GMS account will need to create an account before completing the registration process, as shown in this video(opens in a new tab). Then complete the steps to register outlined below: 

  1. Log in. If you do not know your password, click ‘Forgot password?’.
  2. Click ‘Add a club’ and search for your club
  3. Select your club
  4. Click ‘Register’ in the green box and fill in your details. 
  5. Click ‘Save’ and the registration request will be sent to your club for approval.

Note: Players that have played club rugby in England in any previous season are likely to already have a GMS account, created on their behalf in the past by a volunteer. If you think this applies to you, then please follow the ‘Players with an existing GMS account’ process above.

Players will not be able to complete registrations until Adult Player Registration goes live from 16 July 2024. 

More support for clubs and players on these and other processes is included in the next section of this update.

Help and support with the new process

Adult Player Registration is recognised as a significant change for the game and we will provide relevant information and resources from the launch date to support.

This includes user guides and ‘how to’ videos for clubs and players, some of which can be found below.

Note: As we prepare to roll out the new process, you may notice that your GMS personal dashboard looks different to how it has in the past. More information on the enhanced look and feel of GMS can be found here.

Support for players

Adult Player Registration guides for players can be found here(opens in a new tab). Video ‘how to’ guides can also be found here.(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab)

Players can learn more about the registration processes by watching a recording of a recent webinar(opens in a new tab) or attending an upcoming support session:

– 14 August. Support session for players at men’s Level 5-8 clubs and women’s Level 2-4 clubs. Register here.(opens in a new tab)

– 21 August. Support session for players at men’s clubs at Level 9 and below and women’s Level 5 and below. Register here.(opens in a new tab)

-Clubs at men’s Level 3-4 will be contacted directly by the RFU’s Player Registration team to invite them to a support session.

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found on this page.(opens in a new tab) Support is available here(opens in a new tab) if players are unable to access their GMS account.

Support for clubs

Adult Player Registration guides for club administrators can be found here.(opens in a new tab) Video ‘how to’ guides can also be found here.(opens in a new tab)

Posters will be delivered to every club in the country in the week commencing 15 July for clubs to display in their clubhouse to help encourage players to register. Please get in touch with your Constituent Body if you do not receive yours.

Downloadable digital assets are also available here.(opens in a new tab) Including:

– Editable digital posters to print or for use on social media and in communication with players.
– A range of graphics for use on social media and in communication with players.
– Animated videos to explain the process and encourage players to register.
– Personalised QR codes for clubs that can be found at the bottom of the ‘Organisation Profile’ dashboard on GMS. Players can scan the codes to be directly taken to a page where they either create an account or register to play. Instructions on how to use these codes to simplify the registration process for players can be found here.(opens in a new tab)

Club administrators can learn more about Adult Player Registration by watching recordings of recent webinars.