Sport the way it’s really played, organised
PlayChale is a sports app made in Ghana for the people who play: the Saturday five-a-side, the church games day, the company league. Find a game, fill your squad, book a pitch and keep the score, in one place instead of five WhatsApp groups.
Why we built it
Most sport here is organised in WhatsApp groups and on phone calls. Someone books the pitch, then chases everyone for their share in cash. The fixtures live in a spreadsheet and the scores in somebody’s memory, and when the season ends nobody can say who scored the most.
PlayChale started with a simple idea: the people who turn up to play every week deserve somewhere to keep their results, and a profile that shows what they’ve done. Everything around the game came with it: finding players, booking the pitch, sharing the cost and running the league.
What it does today
For everyone who makes a game happen.
Players
- Find games near you, nearest first, and see where each one is.
- Join in a tap, or as a guest without an account.
- Every result goes on your profile, so your stats travel with you.
Hosts
- Set a game up once and let it repeat every week.
- See who’s paid their share, and mark the cash you’re handed.
- Change the time or the place, and everyone in the game is told.
Venues
- List your pitches and courts, their prices and your opening hours.
- Take bookings that can’t clash with each other.
- Hold time for regulars, maintenance or a booking made at the gate.
Organisers
- Run a league or a knockout: fixtures, the table and the scorers.
- Run a church or school games day, with a live board for the hall.
- Give the whole group one page to follow.
How we run it
The promises behind the app.
Free to get started
Playing and hosting are free, and so is listing a venue or running your first competition. Upgrade only when you need more.
Money goes where it should
Players pay the host or the venue directly. PlayChale keeps track of who’s paid and isn’t part of the payment.
Your data stays yours
We collect what PlayChale needs to work, we don’t sell your data, and there’s no advertising. Your phone number and email are never on your public profile.
Made in Ghana, open everywhere
Built for how sport is played here, and open in any country: prices in the local money, kick-offs in the local time.
The details are in the Terms and the Privacy Policy.
Who’s behind it
Jonathan Ato Markin
Founder
Jonathan builds PlayChale: the app, the API and everything between them.
Away from PlayChale he is a distributed systems researcher and a PhD student in Cyber-Physical Systems at Luleå University of Technology in Sweden, working on systems that stay reliable, coordinated and fast.
Questions, ideas, or something big to run?
We’d like to hear how you play and what would make it easier. Running a league, a games day or a venue? Tell us about it.