The problem
Sponsors, parents and the local paper want match reports, but the club's press volunteer writes up 5 games a week at about 30 minutes each: 2.5 hours a week, about 10.75 hours a month (2.5 x 4.3).
What the AI does
Use ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini as a writing helper. Paste in the score, scorers or top performers, the coach's few lines and the sponsor's name, and ask for a short match report in the club's style plus a two-line social post. Then check the facts with the coach and post it. Free plans are enough for this; paid plans (about $20£15€18A$29C$28 to $27£20€24A$38C$38 a month for one person) allow more use.
A worked example
A football club in Stoke-on-Trent with men's, women's and 3 junior teams posts weekly reports on its website and social pages for 4 local sponsors.
Before
5 reports a week at about 30 minutes each: about 10.75 hours a month
After
5 reports a week at about 10 minutes each, including checking: about 3.6 hours a month
What it's worth
About $142£107€127A$205C$201 a month in volunteer time saved, against $0£0€0A$0C$0 to $27£20€24A$38C$38 for the assistant. 7.15 hours a month saved (10.75 minus 3.6), valued at an assumed $20£15€18A$29C$28 an hour.
How to set it up
- Write a short style guide: length, tone, how sponsors are named and how junior players are named.
- After each game, collect the score and 3 or 4 lines from the coach.
- Paste them in and ask for a report using only those facts, plus a short social post.
- Check names, scores and minutes with the coach before posting.
What goes wrong
- Junior reports: follow your governing body's guidance on naming children and never combine full names with photos without consent. Don't paste children's personal details into a consumer account.
- An assistant can invent a goal, a scorer or a quote. Check every fact against the coach's notes.
- Reports that all sound the same lose readers. Keep the coach's own words in each one.