Company owes thousands to youth sports leagues
December 16, 2008
By J.B. Wogan
Plateau leagues will still play this year, officials say
It’s been a little more than a week since Todd Pladson heard how Eastside sports leagues had lost thousands of dollars to an online registration company. Still, for the Eastlake Little League president, it’s a shock.
Count Me In, a Bellevue-based company, owes Eastlake Little league an estimated $66,000 for fall registration.
“It’s really a slap in the face to everybody,” Pladson said. Count Me In made national headlines earlier this month for its involvement in a U.S. District Court lawsuit where a New Jersey-based soccer league sued Count Me In for $142,000 in registration payments Nov. 10.
The company provides a registration Web site for sports leagues, charging about $3 per registration. In 15-day increments, it pays leagues like Eastlake Little League the rest of the money for registration. But after missing two payments, Count Me In told Pladson it only has $4,000 to give them, significantly less than it owes the league, Pladson said.
It has since asked for more time to generate the money it still owes Eastlake Little League, according to Pladson.
As a matter of good faith, Eastlake Little League has opted not to sue the company yet. It’s exploring other options first, Pladson said.
Pladson has a 9-year-old son, Hank, who plays in the league. His 14-year-old son, Ryan, used to play, too.
“I think all of the board members have kids who are still in the league. We have a significant vested interest in the league,” Pladson said.
Eastlake Lacrosse and Sammamish Little League say that Count Me In owes them money, too — $24,000 and $27,000, respectively.
“It’s just so darn unfortunate. They’re taking advantage of nonprofits and kids,” said Mark Gillies, president of Eastlake Lacrosse.
Gillies is also miffed because his league used Count Me In for the first time this year, unlike Eastlake Little League, which used the company for the last three years.
The good news is that none of the Sammamish-based youth sports leagues will have to cancel next year’s season as a result of the problem, according to league presidents.
As of Dec. 4, Eastlake Little League had received 533 registrations, accounting for roughly $70,000 in fees, according to Pladson. Registration began Nov. 1. Because the league’s registration ranges from $90-160, depending on age and level, there’s some guesswork involved in estimating how much the league stands to lose.
Last year, the league received slightly more than 900 registrations total, meaning that it stands to recuperate slightly less than half its registration fees even if Count Me In can’t pay the league back.
Both Pladson and Gillies said that their leagues had reserve funds that could compensate for lost revenue from the uncollected registration fees. The same is true for the Sammamish Little League, according to its president, Jim Dimlow.
Dimlow said he still has hope that Count Me In will pay back the leagues and resolve the dispute.
“We may be made whole on this, who knows,” Dimlow said.
Count Me In did not return phone calls from the Sammamish Review, though it sent an e-mail: “We are still in business and doing everything we can to resolve the situation.”
The Count Me In debacle should serve as a wakeup call on how leagues approach registration, according to Jim Portugal, media officer for Washington District 9, a little league region that includes Sammamish.
“It’s not good to have someone else hold your money right now,” Portugal said, adding that he would favor having parents register online, but send their money in by check.
“This is not a Seattle or Sammamish thing. This is something that every sports league in the country needs to do. That wasn’t the best model for us leagues to be using,” Portugal said.
Reporter J.B. Wogan can be reached at 392-6434, ext. 247, or jbwogan@isspress.com.
Comments
2 Responses to “Company owes thousands to youth sports leagues”
Got something to say?
We have used Count Me In since 2007 and we have had ongoing issues with them this year (2008) not paying us on time. We would have to call them and they always have some excuse. We have not been paid for October, November and December. Count Me In misappropriated the funds and I am sure Count Me In will file Chapter 11 soon. Drayton should never be allowed to do business again in the USA. The best thing everyone should do is contact the people who registered using Count Me In and dipute the credit card charges and ask them to pay you by check. Good Luck everyone!
We too are owed THOUSANDS by this company. We received an initial payment but have had to call repeatedly with no answer as to when we will receive our payment. Our club is seeking legal council on how to proceed. We have some reserve but are out about $67,000 currently.
What a mess!! Don’t do business with these clowns.