Operator Powerleague is aiming to “change the face of football'>five-a-side football” after kicking off a £1m (US$1.2m, €1.2m) refurbishment plan on its existing sites.

The company has placed an emphasis on customer service and employee satisfaction in an attempt to differentiate from its five-a-side competitors.

Features such as all-new changing rooms, maps for pitch recognition and visible clocks – so that players know when their game is finished – will be installed across Powerleague’s 50 sites.

Chief executive Rupert Campbell told Sports Management that the firm was experimenting with technology, adding a video-replay button to pitches so that moments can be captured and shared. It will also invest in wearable technology so that players can log match statistics.

Staff have been retrained to improve customer service, and have been offered new sporty uniforms after the company carried out a “huge amount of insight”.

Each of the 50 sites will be provided their own crest and identity to give each one a “community club feel”, while efforts are being made to attract more women and children.

Soccercise classes – a Football Association-developed aerobic football class – will be available for women, while children will be able to take advantage of a new Soccer Skills Camp based on the football routines of freestylers Billy Wingrove and Jeremy Lynch, who presented London Live television show F2.

“We’re trying to deliver an experience which is enjoyable for families, kids and women,” said Campbell. “This is a proper service industry, and not just a commodity you can throw away.”

The refurbishment rollout is expected to be complete in 2017, while 13 new hubs in London will also be developed in the near future.

Read the full interview with Rupert Campbell in the upcoming edition of Sports Management. You can subscribe to our free ezine here.