BUCS Play helps universities provide more students with opportunities to take part in recreational football and futsal. Through Intramural Sport (IMS) and Turn Up & Play (TUAP), universities can manage their recreational football offer in one place, create more accessible opportunities for students and better understand who is taking part.
The programmes are designed to complement existing university club and BUCS competition provision by creating opportunities for students who want to play football in a more flexible, social or recreational environment.
Intramural Sport (IMS)
IMS supports universities to manage their internal football and futsal leagues through BUCS Play. Universities can create leagues, register teams and players, manage fixtures and record results, providing a central platform for their recreational competition offer. IMS can be used across a range of formats, including:
- 5-a-side football
- 7-a-side football
- 11-a-side football
- Futsal
- Open, men's and women's provision
The programme gives students the opportunity to represent friendship groups, societies, halls, academic departments or other student communities without needing to play within a traditional university performance or club structure.
For universities, IMS also provides a clearer picture of recreational participation and helps institutions understand who is engaging with their football offer.
Turn Up & Play (TUAP)
Turn Up & Play provides a more flexible route into football for students who may not want to commit to a team or regular league. Universities can use BUCS Play to create and manage informal football or futsal sessions where students can simply register and attend.
TUAP can support universities to:
- provide beginner-friendly and social football opportunities;
- engage students who are new to football or university sport;
- develop targeted sessions for particular student communities;
- create more opportunities for women to play recreational football and futsal;
- provide a pathway from informal participation into IMS, university clubs or other football opportunities.
Sessions can be shaped around the needs of each university and its students, giving institutions flexibility to develop an offer that works locally.
Why use BUCS Play?
Bringing recreational football onto BUCS Play helps universities manage participation more consistently while making it easier for students to find and access opportunities. Through IMS and TUAP, institutions can build a recreational football pathway that allows students to engage with the game in different ways: from attending their first social session to joining an intramural team or progressing into wider university football.
The platform also provides BUCS and universities with better participation insight, helping us understand where football is growing, identify gaps in provision and support the development of more inclusive opportunities across higher education.
Who can get involved?
IMS and TUAP are available to BUCS member institutions looking to develop their recreational football and futsal provision. The programmes are particularly suited to institutions looking to:
- grow recreational participation;
- improve their intramural football offer;
- establish women's recreational football or futsal;
- engage students currently underrepresented within football;
- create more flexible opportunities alongside traditional university club football.
Both IMS and TUAP on BUCS Play are currently free for participating institutions until July 2028, with BUCS providing training and implementation support.
Getting Started
Universities interested in using IMS or Turn Up & Play should contact the Alai from the BUCS Football Development Team. BUCS can support institutions with setting up their BUCS Play community, establishing leagues and sessions, training staff and student leads, and developing an appropriate recreational football offer for their campus.
To find out more, please contact Alai Ayyakannu.
