How we keep players safe

Young footballers across West Africa are targeted by people who pretend to be agents, take money for "trials" abroad, and disappear. Pitchside is built so that this is hard to do here, and easy to report when someone tries.

Scouts are checked by a person

Anyone can create a scout account, but nobody can contact a player until a moderator has checked where they work. Verified scouts carry a gold star. If a "scout" has no star, they cannot reach you through Pitchside.

Guardians decide for under-18s

Profiles of players under 18 stay hidden until a parent or guardian approves them by email. Scouts can't message a young player at all; their request goes to the guardian, who decides what to share. FIFA's rules also stop agents approaching players more than six months before they can sign a professional contract, and we enforce that.

Nobody pays

Pitchside is free for players and families. A genuine scout or club will never ask for money for a trial, registration, a visa, a flight or "paperwork". When a message mentions money, travel or moving to WhatsApp, we show a warning and a moderator reviews it.

If something feels wrong

Use Report on any profile, post or request. Reports are private and reviewed within 24 hours. If you have already paid someone or a child is in danger, contact the Ghana Police Service as well.

Your data

We collect only what scouting needs, never sell it, and store passwords using strong one-way hashing. You can ask for a copy or for deletion at any time.