Subsoccer Strenghtens Its Organization – Ilkka Kaikuvuo appointed as Chairman of The Board

The Finnish company Subsoccer, which manufactures bench soccer games, has appointed a new board of directors and established an advisory board to support its international growth.

Ilkka Kaikuvuo, a board professional and co-founder of Framery, has been elected as the new chairman of the board. He has a strong track record in international trade and excellent expertise in leading growth-phase companies.

“The opportunity to be part of Subsoccer’s story was one I couldn’t pass up. The company has exceptional passion and innovation, which, combined with consistent perseverance, has already taken the company far. Our goal together is to steer Subsoccer to the next level, where bench soccer becomes a global sport,” says Ilkka Kaikuvuo.

— The opportunity to be part of Subsoccer’s story was one I couldn’t pass up.

Ilkka Kaikuvuo, Chairman, Subsoccer Ltd

The board members appointed are Mikki Korhonen, Roope Ropponen ja Jarno Saarinen. Korhonen is a serial entrepreneur and one of Subsoccer’s founders, Ropponen serves as the business development director at PunaMusta Media, and Saarinen is the inventor of the bench soccer game and the biggest shareholder of Subsoccer Ltd.

The newly appointed chairman of the board, Ilkka Kaikuvuo, plays against the game inventor, Jarno Saarinen, in a new pay-and-play game that uses contactless payment.

“Our board is an excellent combination of diverse strengths. Ropponen’s background as a marketing director for alpine skiing sports is important for building the bench soccer as a sport and acquiring partners, Korhonen brings strong financial expertise, and Saarinen naturally guides product development,” says Kaikuvuo.

In addition to the new board, Subsoccer has established an advisory board whose members’ task is to provide background support in operational projects. The members invited are Simo Hämäläinen, founder of Aircohol with a long international career at Rovio, Hartwall, and Heineken; Niko Derome, the co-founder of Supercell; investor Tuomas Partanen, who has over 30 years of international career experience at Marketvisio, which he founded, and at Gartner; UEFA event producer Vishal Patel; and Jere Virtanen, director of Live Current Media and known as Finland’s most famous Manchester United fan. Hämäläinen, Derome, Partanen, and Patel are also shareholders of Subsoccer.

“As the founder of the company, I am very pleased that both the board and the advisory board are now at the right level relative to our goal: We want bench soccer to be an international sport by 2030. With these arrangements, Subsoccer is transitioning smoothly from a Finnish startup to an international scaleup,” states Jarno Saarinen.