Privacy Policy

Football Supporter Africa (formerly Sandlanders Football)

Last updated: 1st October, 2026

1. Introduction

Football Supporter Africa (“we”, “us”, “our”) works with African football clubs, supporters’ groups and associations to build sustainable, community-owned football. We take your privacy seriously and are committed to protecting your personal data.

This policy explains what personal data we collect, how and why we use it, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and the rights you have. It applies to everyone who visits our website at footballsupportersafrica.com (the “Website”), joins us as a member, subscribes to our newsletter, contacts us, or works with us as a club, partner, sponsor or supplier.

Please read this policy alongside our Terms and Conditions and our Cookie Policy.

2. Who We Are (Data Controller)

For the purposes of data protection law, the data controller is:

• Legal name: Registered legal name, e.g. Football Supporter Africa Limited, formerly Sandlanders Football Limited
• Legal form: Community Benefit Society / registered society
• Registration number:
• Registered address: 4 Sunday Adigun Str, Ikeja, Lagos.
• Email: info@footballsupportersafrica.com
• Phone: +234 703 923 1647
• ICO registration number (UK):

Where we operate a separate online entity (for example, a Community Interest Company that manages our digital activities), it may act as a joint controller or as a processor on our behalf.

3. Laws That Apply to Us

We are based in the United Kingdom and work with clubs and supporters in Africa and around the world. We handle personal data in line with:

• the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018;
• the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR);
• where relevant, the EU GDPR for supporters in the European Economic Area; and
• the data protection laws of the African countries we work in, such as Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843), Uganda’s Data Protection and Privacy Act, 2019, and Nigeria’s Data Protection Act, 2023.

Where laws differ, we apply the higher standard of protection wherever practical.

4. The Personal Data We Collect

Personal data means any information that can identify you. We may collect the following.

4.1 Data you give us directly

• Contact details: name, email address, phone number, postal address, country.
• Membership details: the club or supporters’ group you join, membership package, preferred name for your certificate or register entry, and shipping address for wristbands, certificates or shirts.
• Enquiry details: the content of messages sent through our contact forms, emails or social media.
• Newsletter details: your email address and subscription preferences.
• Organisation details: if you are a club, partner, sponsor or consultancy client, your name, job title, organisation, and business contact details.
• Testimonials and stories: any quotes, photos or videos you choose to share with us, with your consent.
• Applications and visits: details you provide when you request a club visit or apply to join or affiliate with our network.

4.2 Payment data

If you pay for a membership or make a donation, payments are handled by third-party payment providers (for example, [Stripe / PayPal / Flutterwave / Paystack]). We do not store full card details. We receive confirmation of payment, the amount, date, and limited identifiers.

4.3 Data collected automatically

When you use the Website, we and our service providers may collect:

• IP address, approximate location, browser type and version, device type, operating system;
• pages visited, time spent, referring website, and click behaviour;
• cookie and similar technology identifiers (see section 12).

4.4 Data from third parties

We may receive information about you from our member clubs and supporters’ groups (for example, to confirm local membership), from payment providers, from analytics and advertising platforms, and from publicly available sources such as your professional profile when you are a prospective partner.

4.5 Special category data

We do not intend to collect special category data (such as health, religion, ethnicity, political opinions or biometric data). Please do not include such information in messages to us. Where our community or club programmes require it, we will explain this separately and obtain explicit consent.

5. How and Why We Use Your Data

Under UK GDPR we must have a lawful basis for using your personal data. The table below sets out our main purposes.

Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time (see section 10). Where we rely on legitimate interests, we have balanced our interests against your rights and freedoms, and you can ask us for details of that assessment.

6. Marketing and Communications

We will only send you marketing emails if you have opted in, or where the law otherwise allows (for example, to existing members about similar services, with an easy way to opt out).

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in any email or by contacting us at info@footballsupportersafrica.com We will still send you service messages that you need (for example, order confirmations).

We never sell your personal data to third parties for their own marketing.

7. Who We Share Your Data With

We share personal data only when needed and with appropriate safeguards. Recipients may include:

• Member clubs and supporters’ groups you choose to join, so they can recognise your membership and keep their member records.
• Service providers who process data on our behalf, such as website hosting, email and newsletter platforms, customer relationship management tools, payment processors, analytics providers, printing and delivery companies, and IT support.
• Partners and affiliates, such as Supporters Direct Europe, only where you have asked us to introduce you or have given consent, or where needed to deliver a joint project.
• Professional advisers, including lawyers, accountants, auditors and insurers.
• Regulators, law enforcement and public authorities when the law requires or when we must protect our rights, safety or property.
• Successors, if our organisation merges with or transfers its activities to another entity, in which case we will make sure your data stays protected and tell you of any material changes.

We require all our processors to protect your data, to use it only on our instructions, and to keep it confidential.

8. Third-Party Content and Links

Our Website may include embedded content (such as YouTube videos) and links to other sites and social media platforms. These third parties may set cookies and collect data about you when you interact with their content. We do not control them and are not responsible for their privacy practices. Please read their privacy policies.

9. International Transfers

Because we work across the UK, Africa and beyond, your data may be transferred to and stored in countries outside your own, including outside the UK and the European Economic Area, and in countries that may not have the same level of data protection.

Where we transfer data internationally, we use appropriate safeguards, such as:

• transfers to countries recognised by the UK Government as providing adequate protection;
• the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses; or
• other lawful transfer mechanisms permitted under applicable law.

You can contact us for more information about the safeguards we use.

10. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the following rights over your personal data:

1. Access: to receive a copy of the data we hold about you.
2. Rectification: to have inaccurate or incomplete data corrected.
3. Erasure: to ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances.
4. Restriction: to ask us to limit how we use your data.
5. Objection: to object to processing based on legitimate interests, and to object to direct marketing at any time.
6. Portability: to receive your data in a structured, commonly used format and have it sent to another controller, where applicable.
7. Withdrawal of consent: to withdraw consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of earlier processing.
8. Automated decisions: not to be subject to decisions based solely on automated processing that significantly affect you. We do not currently make such decisions.

To use any of these rights, email info@footballsupportersafrica.com or write to us at 4 Sunday Adigun Str, Ikeja, Lagos.. We may need to verify your identity first. We will respond within one month (or the period set by the law that applies to you), and we may extend this by up to two further months for complex requests, telling you why. We do not normally charge a fee, unless a request is clearly unfounded or excessive.

11. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration and disclosure. These include:

• encrypted connections (HTTPS) on our Website;
• access controls and role-based permissions for staff, volunteers and directors;
• confidentiality commitments and data protection training;
• regular software updates and backups; and
• due diligence on our service providers.

No method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security. If a data breach is likely to put your rights at risk, we will notify you and the relevant regulator as the law requires.

12. Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use cookies to make the Website work, to understand how it is used, and to improve it.

• Strictly necessary cookies: needed for the Website to function and for security. These cannot be switched off.
• Performance and analytics cookies: help us understand how visitors use the Website (for example, which pages are most popular).
• Functional cookies: remember your preferences.
• Marketing and third-party cookies: set by services such as YouTube or social media platforms.

Where required, we will ask for your consent before setting non-essential cookies. You can change your choices at any time through our cookie banner [or Cookie Settings link] and through your browser settings. Further detail, including a list of the cookies we use, is in our Cookie Policy [link].

13. How Long We Keep Your Data

We keep personal data only as long as needed for the purposes in this policy, including legal, accounting and reporting requirements. Typical periods are:

[Adjust these periods to your actual practice.] When data is no longer needed, we delete or anonymise it securely.

14. Children’s Privacy

Our Website is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 16 without the consent of a parent or guardian.

Some of our member clubs run youth teams and community programmes. Any data about children collected in those programmes is the responsibility of the relevant club or of us acting jointly with it, and is handled with parental or guardian consent and extra care. If you believe a child has given us personal data without permission, please contact us and we will delete it.

15. Photos, Video and Media

We may take photographs and video at events, club visits and tournaments, and publish them on our Website, social channels and reports. We will tell people at events when filming or photography is taking place and, where required, obtain consent. For under-18s, we will obtain consent from a parent or guardian. You can ask us to remove an image of you at any time by contacting info@footballsupportersafrica.com.

16. Supporter Membership and Club Registers

When you become a member, your name may be listed in a membership register held by us or by your chosen club, including a physical register at a club house in Africa. We will only display what you have agreed to (for example, your name and country). If you would prefer to remain anonymous, tell us when you join or at any time afterwards.

17. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we handle your data, please contact us first at [privacy email] so we can try to put it right.

You also have the right to complain to the relevant data protection authority:

• United Kingdom: the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), ico.org.uk, telephone 0303 123 1113.
• Ghana: the Data Protection Commission.
• Uganda: the Personal Data Protection Office (under NITA-U).
• Nigeria: the Nigeria Data Protection Commission.
• Other countries: the data protection authority where you live or work.

18. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, services or the law. We will post the updated version on this page with a new “Last updated” date. If we make significant changes, we will give you a clearer notice, for example by email or a banner on the Website. We encourage you to check this page regularly.

19. Contact Us

For any questions about this policy or your personal data, contact us:

Football Supporter Africa 4 Sunday Adigun Str, Ikeja, Lagos. Email: info@footballsupportersafrica.com Phone: +234 703 923 1647