OleOle is the worldwide leading social media site for football fans. Fans around the world need a site that enables news and information that is independent of the traditional media, leagues, clubs or organizations who deliver their own content. OleOle’s multi-lingual site enables football fans to connect with each other in an environment that has 100% fan-driven content - blogs, fan clubs, articles, news, podcasts, photos, videos, stats, and history.

OleOle has taken the best technologies from social networking, social media and football news and created the only vertical social media platform for football. OleOle enables passionate fans to discuss any professional team, any player, match or competition in 10 different languages. OleOle is the future of online sports – where the fans participate in the conversation, but more importantly, create and drive the conversation. Fans want more than one reporter writing about their favourite team or player – they want opinions from multiple experts - and their friends. Most importantly they want their voice and opinion to be heard.

OleOle, the worldwide leading social media site for football fans, announced the acquisition and integration of nine more top football blogs, communities and forums.   By gathering together market-leading bloggers in multiple regions and across ten languages, OleOle is successfully building the world’s dominant social media site for football.  OleOle has attracted some of the leading independent football sites, most of which are the #1 blogs and forums focused on their respective club. After the successful integration of Arseblog, the award-winning blog on Arsenal FC, the company has subsequently added: The Lord of the Wing, Chelseablog, Harry Hotspur, Fans del Real Madrid, Boca Juniors Fans, Soccer-Art.co.uk, Football-Spot, and Real Madrid Talk (June 27) to its site.

Fan-site owners are attracted to OleOle because OleOle’s innovative global football platform allows them to share original multimedia content and breaking news to many more football fans than they otherwise could maintaining an independent blog or community.  No other site on the internet is built for sports fan interaction like OleOle, and bloggers can do much more than just write – OleOle offers photo and video sharing, live match reporting and commentary, fan clubs, football wallpapers and graphics, community discussion as well as document club and player history in an extensive online wiki.  Bloggers are taking advantage of OleOle’s unique publishing tools purposefully built around the real-world structure of professional football.

Bloggers are football fans first and want to write passionately about breaking news and rumours in a social and sometimes viral setting for the benefit of as many fans as possible.  All content on OleOle is 100% user-generated and completely user-moderated, and site owners who have moved their blogs and communities to OleOle continue to remain independent and in complete creative control.  OleOle plans to continue adding top blogs, forums and fan communities to the global site and is currently evaluating top independent sites from the UK, Germany, Spain, and France.

OleOle is adding real-time, interactive live blogging to enable football fans to pick sides as they interact around match reports – from their computer and from the stadium

ZURICH, Switzerland -- 5 June 2008 -- OleOle, the worldwide leading social media site for football fans, today announced that it has added an interactive MatchCentre to its global football platform in time for EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland. Football fans can visit the OleOle MatchCentre before matches to get pre-game commentary and squad details, and during matches for real-time play by play and stats, live blogging, match photos and videos, and “smack talk” discussions with fans of rival teams. After the game they can access post-match commentary, pictures and videos taken at the match by fans, and a “Eurocast” podcast that includes fan critique and commentary called-in right from the stadium.

Football is a global sport but the most visited website generally publishes “unbiased” information based on official news and written by reporters trying to remain neutral. Fans don’t want neutrality; they want the real, unfiltered news about their teams and the bias that goes along with it. OleOle’s MatchCentre uses the same interactive approach found on the rest of the site and makes static live match reports and football scores obsolete. It provides a unique online experience in 10 languages for fans and the same kind of banter and insight found at the stadium or pub.

MatchCentre highlights OleOle’s new Live Blog function which enables minute by minute match commentary, insight and documentation of plays from a blogger’s perspective. Live Blogging has an interface tailored to entering in match plays quickly and efficiently, in a time-based match structure that includes penalties, goals, and substitutions. Bloggers type in a comment, submit, and their screen refreshes via AJAX technology, and the match blog is immediately refreshed for viewers. Fans can quickly flip back and forth between multiple live blogs to read opposing views and different opinions on the same play.

MatchCentre enables users to show their colours and change their screen display by selecting one of the teams, and they can pick live commentary from the bloggers who support their side and correspond with them directly. Fans can also discuss the match with other supporters through the stream-of-thought SmackTalk widget, a real-time comment system that enables fans to actively participate in and shape the discussion.

The Arseblogger, creator of Arseblog, OleOle’s recently acquired award-winning weblog on Arsenal FC, will also produce an exclusive, fan-driven EURO 2008 report as a podcast – the Eurocast - at the end of each game day. Fans can call in live from the stadium while watching a match and comment on anything – the crowd, team line-ups, and questionable reffing decisions. The Eurocast will feature selected fan messages along with insightful match commentary and will be available to download from OleOle’s MatchCentre and from Apple iTunes. Local call-in phone numbers are:

• UK +44 (20) 7193 6971
• Switzerland +41 (44) 586 62 08

“We see football supporters across geographies and languages looking for ways to interact around live matches other than just following the score. OleOle’s MatchCentre is the first technology that gives every fan the opportunity to become a global reporter or commentator,” said Doug Knittle, CEO and founder of OleOle. “Football news sites just don’t give passionate football fans what they’re looking for – the ability to drive the conversation about their team. MatchCentre is another innovative way OleOle is putting football into the hands of the fans through social media.”

About OleOle
OleOle is the worldwide leading social media site for football fans. Fans around the world need a site that publishes news and information independent from the traditional media, leagues, clubs or organizations who deliver their own content. OleOle’s multi-lingual site enables football fans to connect with each other in an environment that has 100% fan-driven content - blogs, fan clubs, articles, news, podcasts, photos, videos, football scores, stats, and history. Using social media technologies, football supporters can write, contribute, share, rate and vote on multimedia content in 10 languages. Founded in 2006, OleOle is a privately-held international company with headquarters in Beverly Hills, California and offices in New Zealand as well as across Europe and South America. For more information visit: www.oleole.com

Rebelling against the status-quo of “big media’s” stranglehold on the world’s sport, founder Doug Knittle enlisted the help of David Mok to create an alternative news source for football fans after he couldn’t find the information he needed during the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany. Together they started OleOle to break the mold of old-world geographic limitations and centralized news reporting that tethers large media conglomerates to the 1950’s. These renegades set out to build an online experience for football fans where the fans drive the news and discussions, not some commentator in a suit or a glassy-eyed editor behind a big walnut desk.

The founders shook up the ticketing industry in 2001 when Razorgator, the world first online ticket exchange, went live – enabling ticket holders anywhere to find buyers quickly and securely, and vice-versa. Razorgator quickly became one of the most successful disruptive technologies the ticketing industry has seen, and the concept was quickly copied by dozens of competitors.

The OleOle Football Platform provides football fans a unique destination - unlike any sports site anywhere – to get the real information on football news, gossip, rumors, and media - anywhere in the world. It is the world’s first global social media network, available in 10 languages to fans everywhere. OleOle is changing the definition “media company” and bringing breaking news past the filters, the censors and centralized reporting desks and putting it squarely in the hands of the fans.

1. What does OleOle do?

OleOle has created the world's leading global social media site that enables football (soccer) fans to report, discuss and get news and information on any team or league or player in professional football.

The OleOle Football Platform combines blogging, publishing, and media sharing with social community features so fans can follow and debate every move their favourite team makes without having to visit dozens of disparate websites.

The platform is a place for fans to easily find and share different types of information on their favourites – from live scores to fantasy football, photos to podcasts, history to forums. The football platform harnesses and organizes 100% fan-driven content across 10 languages.

2. How does OleOle benefit football fans?

Football is a global sport, but today’s online news outlets are inherently local. News and information on different teams requires fans to visit multiple sites, and this information is typically only available in the team’s native language. The most popular sites in football generally publish “unbiased” information, based on official news and written by reporters trying to remain neutral. Fans don’t want neutrality; they want the real, unfiltered news about their teams and the bias that goes along with it.

There are few outlets online today for a two-way discussion, and those are limited to specific teams or players. By enabling fans to report and discuss news on any team, match or player, and in 10 languages, OleOle users participate and drive discussions about topics they are passionate about. Through fan journalism, there’s no limit to the depth of coverage even for 2^nd or 3^rd division teams in the smallest of countries. OleOle aims to be the single largest source for football information both for the world’s most popular teams and also the “long tail” of teams, leagues and players.

3. What is the history of the company?

• The company was founded in December of 2006 and began initial beta testing of the platform in May of 2007. Over the next 9 months the company added functionality in 7 languages.
• The company became the defacto online presence of the 2007 Copa America in July. As the Official Hospitality Provider for this South American competition OleOle covered all matches in Venezuela.
• The Oceania Football Confederation launched their website on the OleOle Football Platform in July of 2007.
• In August 2007, OleOle became an official Travel and Hospitality Partner of the US Soccer Federation and US Men’s National Team.
• OleOle launched a Beta II version of the platform on April 28, 2008, and the first public version of the OleOle Football Platform was released on May 19, 2008 in 10 languages.

4. Who are the founders of the company?

Doug Knittle, chief executive officer, and David Mok, chief technology officer, founded the company in late 2006. They worked together previously at RazorGator, an online ticket broker also founded by Doug Knittle.

5. Where is the company located?

OleOle is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California (9777 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1004, Beverly Hills, CA 90212), has development offices in New Zealand as well as offices across South America and Europe.

6. Why are you located in the US where football isn’t very popular?

OleOle is a true global company with employees distributed around the world. There are millions of football fans in the United States that follow MLS teams as well clubs outside the US - America has other sports, but football is still quite popular.

Most importantly, California is an ideal place to headquarter a technology company -- to leverage the latest technologies originated in the region, as well as benefit from an experienced social media talent pool. California’s time zone is also a perfect half-way point between Asia and Europe, enabling more efficient global coordination. And, the weather can’t be beat.

7. How many employees does the company have?

The company has about 27 full time employees (May 2008) and also employs a team of localization experts. Bloggers and reporters are not employed by the company but some may benefit from revenue share based on advertising as well as official press credentials, paid travel to matches, and match tickets.

8. How is the company funded?

OleOle, LLC has been privately funded to date by its founders and other individual investors. The company’s social media platform has received approximately $5M USD in a Series A investment. For more information on investment, please contact us.

9. What kind of people use OleOle?

OleOle has primary three types of users:

Information seekers, who want to stay updated on their favourite teams, players and leagues. Typical football fans follow their national team as well as 1-3 professional clubs, and being able to find this information all on a single home page makes it easy to stay on top of scores, player transfers and upcoming matches.

Fans, who want more than just information, they have an opinion and aren’t afraid to share it. They actively support their favourite teams and clubs, and participate on OleOle by commenting, voting on content, discussing topics in forums, and submitting interesting news.

Football Fanatics, who devote hours each week to following their teams and want to actively share this information with others. These fans are sports journalists, or photo journalists, might work in football, or are simply aspiring amateur writers with day jobs. Football fanatics start and participate in online and offline fan clubs, blog about their teams on a regular basis, document team facts, history and stats, and love to debate with other fans and supporters of rival teams.

10. How many users does the company have?

OleOle has maintained about 30,000 active members through its Beta period, with hundreds of thousands of site visitors.

11. How big is the site? What does it cover?

OleOle covers all of professional football. This includes more than 170 competitions, 300 professional leagues, 208 national teams and football associations, 5,580 football clubs, and over 57,000 players. Each of these topics has a separate, user-controlled section on OleOle that offers photos, videos, facts and history, news, blogs, football scores, forums and much more.

Every section is available in each of ten languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese and Korean.

12. How is OleOle different from Facebook or MySpace or Orkut?

OleOle is not a social network, it’s a vertical social media platform. Football fans can interact on the site using many social community features, but the platform is designed to provide fans with a multi-lingual infrastructure to have two-way discussions and debates about the sport and specific topics.

The entire site is built around the “real-world” structure of football, and fans can find the teams and information they need, and discuss vote and comment or create new content. There are Fan Clubs that allow groups of people to organize around a specific team or player and focus on a local region. These are much more specific and representative of real world fan clubs, unlike the generic and huge groups setup on social networks.

13. How is OleOle different from Wordpress or Blogger?

Bloggers and reporters can and have shut their blogs on Wordpress and Blogger and moved their posts to OleOle because of the high concentrations of traffic around specific topics on the site. OleOle blog tools offer the same functionality as other popular blog tools, but are integrated into the OleOle Football Platform. That means bloggers don’t need to maintain separate websites themselves, and their posts can be instantly accessed by everyone on the Platform interested in that topic. As many bloggers know, it’s difficult to build an audience – it takes great content, time and some salesmanship. On OleOle, bloggers can focus on what they really love and what they’re good at - writing great content.

14. How does the company make money?

OleOle is building the largest vertical advertising platform focused on football properties. The OleOle vertical ad network will serve ads across OleOle and also on third-party sites and blogs. Football online is fractured today, so global advertisers must work with many small sites to get enough reach. On OleOle media buys can be global or local, segmented by user demographics, language and country, and section sponsorships are available to global brands.

In addition to advertising the company will offer other premium products and services that football fans want – merchandise, tickets and travel packages, internet TV and other exclusive content.

Here's what others are saying about OleOle

	OleOle's blog acquisition in the London Telegraph
	By Shane Richmond, Telegraph.co.uk., July 23, 2008
	"Meanwhile, OleOle, the US-based social media site built around football, has been adding football blogs to its network, in effect buying in audience to grow its network. Recently they’ve added Arseblog, Lord of the Wing, Chelseablog, Harry Hotspur, Fans del Real Madrid, Boca Juniors Fans, Soccer-Art.co.uk, Football-Spot, and Real Madrid Talk."
	OleOle on ReadWriteWeb
	By Richard MacManus, ReadWriteWeb, 25 June 2008
	"Overall OleOle is an impressive site and a great example of how the Social Web can be utilized in the real world. I'll be watching OleOle with interest, [...]as an example of what can be done with web technologies for a mainstream audience."
	OleOle in the LA Times Technology section
	By Alana Semuels, LA Times, 19 June 2008
	"If you’ve ever longed for someone to type "GOALLLSKIII” on your screen while you’re watching Russia play, this is the place for you."
	OleOle in The Original Winger
	By Ben Hooper, The Original Winger, 23 May 2008
	"Harnessing the power of the Internet to benefit the growth of the sport and our culture is no small undertaking. But it is definitely being done. One of the leading sites pushing the social networking side of the sport is OleOle."
	OleOle's launch in the Telegraph's technology blog
	By Shane Richmond, Telegraph.co.uk., 21 May 2008
	"I devoted much of my testing time to sprucing up the page for Norwich City and managed to fill the page out nicely in relatively little time."
	OleOle's integration of Arseblog
	By Robert Andrews, paidContent, 20 May 2008
	paidContent, covering UK's digital media economy, publishes Robert Andrews' report on OleOle's acquisition of Arseblog: "Knittle is aiming to bring more football blogs on board. Sites that can convert fan passion into voluntary content creation stand a chance of attracting reciprocal readership."
	Doug Knittle, OleOle's CEO and founder, in an interview with socalTECH.com
	socalTECH.com, 19 May 2008
	In the interview, Doug talks about how he started the platform and what OleOle is all about: "Football is the biggest sport in the world. Social sites are headed for specific verticals now, and I couldn't think of anything bigger. We've organized the sport, like Google is organizing search. We are empowering fans to essentially create the content for the site, and they can pretty much create any kind of content they want around their favorite team or player, or event or a competition."
	On Arseblog and OleOle
	On Technology, 9 May 2008
	"I’m not even an Arsenal fan but Arseblogger is one of the best writers around and I always enjoy reading his entertaining posts on the ups and downs of the Flamster et al."
	Arseblog now part of OleOle's blogging network
	By Damien Mulley, Damien Mulley's blog, 7 May 2008
	"Congrats to the Arseblogger who will now work fulltime on Arseblog which is part of the OleOle.com football network and which itself wants to turn itself into a social network for football. Football fans being the obsessive kind will probably make it a massive success."
	OleOle, Arseblog and the future of football blogging
	By Ahmed Bilal, Football Media, 5 May 2008
	"It’s significant because it’s the first step in organised blog aggregation. Welcome to the world of football blog networks."

LOS ANGELES, 17 August 2007 -- David Beckham’s arrival is a sign that the United States’ soccer fan base has finally been acknowledged. With strong numbers in the youth leagues and the rise of the MLS, the sport’s popularity is growing exponentially. Now, American fans who have long had to visit European soccer sites for their fill, finally have OleOle.com to create their own meeting ground in a virtual, interactive online community of soccer fanatics around the world.

Since its beta aunch in March 2007, OleOle has grown to almost 8,000 users. According to site statistics, the number of U.S. soccer fans on the site is second only to Brazil. Recognizing the need for an American and international virtual community, OleOle.com uses new generation web tools to create a complete home for football fans on the internet, featuring blogs, customized news feeds, forums, Podcasts, video streaming, social networks, photos, and other features that members can use to generate the content featured on this site.

The site is free to use, and emphasizes participation of the fan community as the key factor of its success. It covers all major soccer leagues and reports live scores from each continent. Users send in reports, videos, and blogs, which are then evaluated by other users. Fans can sign up, interact, make friends, discuss football, write articles, share photos and videos, and contribute to the creation of the world’s largest online football community.

Fans also create their own communities within regions, states and cities, while having access to content from around the world on the same site. OleOle works with its regional members to organize local meetups and events, translating the virtual community into a “real world” one. OleOle also offers its top bloggers a chance to be a part of the “real world,” by giving them press passes to report on big events. In June 2007, two of OleOle’s top bloggers covered the Copa America in Venezuela.

Most recently, OleOle launched the unique European Super League — the world’s first Pan-European fantasy football game. Members can pick players from any team in the top leagues in England, Spain, Italy, France, and Germany. There are thousands of players to choose from, and prizes to win. The top prize is a ticket to a European final, with flight and accommodation fully paid. Players can also win Sony PS3s, PSPS, iPods, jerseys, videogames, and OleOle merchandise. There are also individual games for the leagues in England, Spain, Italy, France and Germany, also accompanied by prizes.

OleOle is accessible in five languages — English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Italian — with German, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese to be added.

LOS ANGELES, 10 August, 2007 -- The online football community OleOle, has launched the world’s first Pan-European fantasy football game: the European Super League. OleOle members can pick from thousands of players from any team in the top leagues in England, Spain, Italy, France, and Germany, mixing them up to create fantasy teams that play against each other. There are several prizes to be won. The European Football League top prize is a ticket to a European league final, with flight and accommodation fully paid. Members are eligible to win Sony PS3s, PSPS, iPods, jerseys, videogames, and OleOle merchandise. There are also individual games for the leagues in England, Spain, Italy, France and Germany, with accompanying prizes.

The site is free to use, and emphasizes participation of the fan community as the key factor of its success. Users send in reports, videos, and blogs, which are then evaluated by other users. Since its launch in March 2007, the site has grown to almost 8,000 users from around the world. It covers all major football leagues and reports live scores from each continent.

OleOle offers international football fans a meeting ground in their interactive online community from around the world. The site uses new generation web tools to create a complete home for football fans on the internet, featuring blogs, customised news feeds, forums, Podcasts, video streaming, social networks, photos, and many other features that members can use to generate the content featured on this site. OleOle.com awards its members with opportunities to be a part of the “real world,” by giving them press passes to report on big events. In June 2007, two of OleOle’s top bloggers covered the Copa America in Venezuela. In addition, OleOle works with its regional members to organize local meetups and events.

OleOle.com is accessible in five languages — English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Italian — with German, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese to be added. Fans can sign up, interact, make friends, discuss football, write articles, share photos and videos, and contribute to the creation of the world’s largest online football community.

TORONTO, Ontario, 3 August, 2007 -- Ever since Toronto FC’s debut in April 2007, Canadian soccer fans are slowly coming together over their favourite game. However, the football community still remains largely disjointed in small pockets across the country. Now OleOle offers Canadian fans a meeting ground through an online interactive online community of soccer fanatics from around the world.

OleOle uses new generation web tools to create a complete home for football fans on the internet, featuring blogs, customised news feeds, forums, Podcasts, video streaming, social networks, photos, and many other features that members can use to generate the content featured on this site. OleOle also offers its top bloggers a chance to be a part of the “real world,” by giving them press passes to report on major events.

Canada’s multicultural population, as well as its growing younger generation of fans, makes it one of the largest soccer fan bases in North America. OleOle is accessible in five languages — including both English and French. Fans across Canada can now sign up, interact, meet new friends, discuss football, write articles, share photos and videos, and contribute to the creation of the world’s largest online football community.

The site is free to use, and emphasizes participation of the fan community as the key factor of its success. Since its launch in March 2007, a month before Toronto FC’s debut, the site has grown to almost 8,000 users from around the world. It covers all major soccer leagues and reports live scores from each continent. Users send in reports, videos, photos, and blogs, which are then viewed and evaluated by the community.

OleOle and U.S. Soccer Team up to Offer Fans the Opportunity to Support American Soccer Around the World

LOS ANGELES, 26 June 2007 -- OleOle, the ultimate online community destination for soccer fans and a leading provider of travel packages for major soccer competitions around the world, today announced it has partnered with U.S. Soccer to become the official travel partner for the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team. OleOle.com will provide exclusive travel packages to both corporate buyers and individuals, offering fans easy access to a U.S. squad proving itself a rising star among soccer's international champions.

"OleOle is committed to making it easy for fans to take pride in U.S. Soccer. Our partnership with the U.S. Soccer Federation encourages people to support the U.S. Men's National Team in person as they travel the globe," said Doug Knittle, founder of OleOle. "This is just one of an assortment of offerings from OleOle that gives people access to premier soccer events worldwide, whether they are actually on location at the matches or connecting with other fans on the site."

Today's announcement comes on the heels of OleOle's recent agreement with Copa America 2007 to provide exclusive hospitality packages to one of the world's most prestigious soccer events. The South American national team championship will be played in Venezuela from June 26 to July 15, 2007.

"Our partnership with OleOle provides fans an easy and efficient gateway to cheering for the U.S. Men's National team throughout the world," said U.S. Soccer's Director of Communications Jim Moorhouse. "OleOle is making it possible for fans from across the United States to support the team and the players they love."

The OleOle travel packages includes hotel, event tickets, transportation to and from the matches and a courteous staff available to answer questions. Current packages available include the U.S. Men's match-up with Sweden at Goteborg Ullevi Stadium on August 22, and upcoming competitions in Switzerland and in Spain (against Catalonia) in October. For more information on the top- quality packages or to make a purchase, please visit: http://www.oleole.com/ticketpackages/.

The U.S. Soccer Federation is the governing body for soccer in the Untied States. Established in 1916, it is one of the world's first organizations to be affiliated with FIFA, the Federation Internationale de Football Association, soccer's world governing body. The U.S. Men's National Team recently won their fourth CONCACAF Gold Cup crown with a 2-1 victory over Mexico on June 24, 2007. Under new head coach Bob Bradley, the team has integrated a number of new players and stars as they begin to target a berth in their sixth straight FIFA World Cup in 2010 in South Africa.

In addition to offering premium travel packages, OleOle.com provides a thriving online community for soccer fans all over the globe, enabling them to connect with like-minded devotees who share their enthusiasm for the world's best loved sport.

About OleOle
OleOle is the ultimate online destination for soccer enthusiasts worldwide, where fans kickoff. By incorporating the newest Web 2.0 technologies, the site gives soccer aficionados the tools to spread and share their passion for the sport with others. Along with comprehensive social networking functionalities, blogs, photos, videos and other user-generated content, OleOle.com offers hospitality packages to world-class soccer events, live scores, worldwide soccer news and an upcoming comprehensive fantasy game. OleOle has offices in Spain, New Zealand and the United States. For more information, please visit http://www.oleole.com and experience soccer in a whole new way.

About U.S. Soccer Federation
\As the governing body of soccer in all its forms in the United States, U.S. Soccer has helped chart the course for the sport in the USA for close to 95 years. In that time, the Federation's mission statement has been very simple and very clear: to make soccer, in all its forms, a preeminent sport in the United States and to continue the development of soccer at all recreational and competitive levels. To that end, the sports growth in the past two decades has been nothing short of remarkable. From player and facility development to hosting World Cups, U.S. Soccer has helped to build a platform on which the future of the sport has never been more secure.