2026-27 Pre-Season Membership Sale Window
Guidance for Clubs and Leagues
Overview
From 25 July 2026, memberships for the 2026-27 season will be available to purchase.
At the same time, 2025-26 memberships (including Taster memberships) will be removed from sale.
This change has been made to simplify the joining journey for new participants, reduce membership purchasing errors, and enable people inspired by the Commonwealth Games to get involved in netball immediately, rather than waiting until the new season begins on 1 September 2026.
As part of this approach, players who purchase a 2026-27 membership can participate in recognised netball activity straight away, once their payment has been successfully processed.
Key Message
During July and August 2026, a player is eligible to participate in recognised netball activity if they either:
Hold a valid 2025-26 England Netball membership; or
Have purchased a 2026-27 England Netball membership and can evidence their purchase.
Quick Decision Guide
Can this player participate in recognised netball activity?
✅ The player holds a valid 2025-26 England Netball membership → Yes, they can play as normal until 31 August 2026.
✅ The player has purchased a 2026-27 England Netball membership and can evidence their purchase → Yes, they can play immediately once payment has been successfully processed, even if their membership is showing as "Pending" in ENgage.
❌ The player has neither a valid 2025-26 membership nor evidence of a 2026-27 membership purchase → No, they must purchase membership before participating.
Why has this change been made?
This approach has been introduced to:
Make the joining experience simpler for new participants.
Reduce instances of people purchasing the wrong membership.
Reduce the administrative burden on clubs and England Netball's Customer Experience Team.
Make it easier for people inspired to join netball following the Commonwealth Games to get involved straight away.
Give new members immediate access to participation and membership benefits without having to wait until 1 September.
In practice, new members can receive up to 12 months, plus an additional month and week, of participation and membership benefits for the price of a standard annual membership.
Can new members play immediately?
Yes.
Anyone who purchases a 2026-27 England Netball membership from 25 July 2026 onwards can participate in recognised and authorised netball activity immediately once their payment has been successfully processed.
They do not need to wait until the season start date of 1 September 2026 to begin participating.
Are new members insured before 1 September?
Yes.
If a player has purchased a 2026-27 membership and can evidence their purchase, they are covered by England Netball's insurance arrangements for recognised netball activity from the point their payment has been successfully processed.
Why does the membership show as "Pending" rather than "Active"?
The current membership system has been designed around memberships becoming active from the official season start date, which is the 1 September.
As a result, members purchasing a 2026-27 membership before 1 September may display:
EN Member = Pending
Status = Pending
This reflects the membership term start date within the system and does not mean the individual cannot participate during the pre-season sale window.
For the purposes of participation in recognised netball activity during July and August, proof of membership purchase should be accepted.
What evidence should players provide?
Members will receive confirmation of their purchase in the form of a digital receipt. This is available to them via email and also in their ENgage record.
They may also use their digital membership card. More information regarding digital cards is available here.
Clubs and leagues may ask players to provide evidence of their membership purchase where confirmation is required.
What does this mean for second claim players?
We recognise this is the area where clubs are most likely to experience questions during July and August.
A player who already holds a valid England Netball membership for 2025-26 remains eligible to participate as normal until 31 August 2026.
Where a player purchases a 2026-27 membership during the pre-season sale window, evidence of purchase should be accepted even if the system displays their future membership as "Pending".
What if a team needs a player at short notice?
We understand that summer leagues often need players at short notice due to:
Injuries
Illness
Rearranged fixtures
Holiday absences
In these circumstances, clubs should verify that the player either:
Holds a valid 2025-26 membership; or
Has purchased a 2026-27 membership and can provide evidence of that purchase.
If either of these conditions is met, the player can participate in recognised netball activity.
Does this affect existing members?
No.
Current 2025-26 memberships remain valid until 31 August 2026, and members continue to enjoy all existing membership benefits during that period.
How can clubs validate the membership status of its players?
The club secretary can use the Membership List (available in the Members tile) to validate the membership status of its players. Clubs should use the Membership Year filter, located on the right-hand side of the page.
Selecting 2025–2026 will display members with an active 2025-26 membership.
Selecting 2026–2027 will display members with an active 2026-27 membership.
Is this a permanent change?
This pre-season approach has been introduced to support participation growth and simplify the joining journey for new participants during a key period for the sport.
England Netball will review feedback from clubs, leagues, counties and regions as part of future planning.
Need support?
If you have a membership query that isn't covered in this guidance, please contact the England Netball Customer Experience Team.