Local Football Coach Builds AI-Powered Coaching Platform and Pledges 10% of Profits to Morley YFC
Norfolk youth coach creates Touchline, a first-of-its-kind agentic AI assistant for grassroots football, built entirely with artificial intelligence as a one-person team
Morley, Norfolk, 18/03/2026
John Sears, a youth football coach at Morley YFC, has launched Touchline, an AI-powered platform that connects every part of a grassroots football club in one place. From coaches and club managers to players and parents, Touchline bridges the gaps between all stakeholders, giving grassroots football the kind of joined-up technology previously only available at professional academies. What makes the story even more remarkable is that John built the entire platform himself, with no coding background, using AI as his development partner.
As part of the launch, John has committed to donating a minimum of 10% of all Touchline profits back to Morley YFC as ongoing sponsorship, supporting the club that inspired the platform in the first place.
From the Training Pitch to the Tech World
The idea for Touchline came directly from John’s experience coaching the Morley YFC Under-13s. Like thousands of volunteer coaches across the country, he found himself spending hours planning sessions, tracking player development, and trying to create meaningful training experiences, all without the resources that professional clubs take for granted.
“I’d be standing on the training pitch thinking, there has to be a better way to do this,” said Sears. “Grassroots coaches put in incredible hours for their communities, but we’re expected to do everything with nothing. I wanted to build something that could genuinely help.”
Built with AI, Not a Dev Team
Sears’ career began with a decade in professional motorsport management before he devoted the last five years to blockchain technology and agentic AI development, building intelligent systems that can reason, plan, and take action autonomously. Rather than raising investment or hiring developers, he used AI tools, primarily Anthropic’s Claude, to build the entire Touchline platform himself. With no formal software engineering training, he represents a growing wave of “AI-native” founders who are using artificial intelligence not just as a product feature, but as their entire development team.
“People assume you need a team of engineers to build a tech product. I built Touchline with AI as my co-founder, essentially. Five years of working with agentic AI taught me how to collaborate with these tools at a deep level. One person with a clear problem to solve and that kind of experience can now build something that would have taken a full team and six figures of investment just two years ago.”
Touchline is a complete club, manager, player, and parent hub. It offers AI-generated training sessions tailored to a team’s age and ability, player development tracking & feedback, video analysis tools, tactical planning features, and seamless communication between coaches, club officials, and families. By bringing everything into one platform, it eliminates the patchwork of WhatsApp groups, spreadsheets, and paperwork that most grassroots clubs rely on. All of this comes in at significantly less than what most clubs are already paying just for membership payment processing alone.
Giving Back to Morley YFC
For Sears, the commitment to Morley YFC is personal. As a volunteer coach, he’s seen first-hand how grassroots clubs operate on tight budgets and the goodwill of their communities.
“Morley YFC gave me the pitch, the admin umbrella, and the reason to build this. It only feels right that as Touchline grows, the club grows with it. The 10% pledge isn’t a marketing exercise. It’s a promise to the community that helped make this happen.”
Tim Chen, Chairman of Morley YFC, added –
“We are always exploring different ways that we can best support our coaches & players.
When John created Touchline, it quickly became clear how powerful it could be for player development, coach planning, and engaging parents. We’re proud that it started here at Morley YFC and excited to see where it goes.”
About Touchline
Touchline (touchline.xyz) is an AI-powered platform that serves as a complete hub for grassroots football clubs, connecting coaches, club managers, players, and parents in one place. It provides intelligent session planning, player development tracking, video analysis, tactical tools, and streamlined communication across all stakeholders, making professional-grade club management accessible and affordable for community football. The entire platform costs clubs significantly less than what most are already paying just for membership payment processing.
About MoonBoots Consultancy
Touchline is developed by MoonBoots Consultancy UK Ltd, a strategic AI advisory firm founded by John Sears and based in Norfolk. MoonBoots specialises in helping organisations understand and implement agentic AI solutions with clarity over hype.
Media Contact: John Sears | Founder, MoonBoots Consultancy UK Ltd / Touchline | hello@touchline.xyz | 07917 834059| touchline.xyz
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