Meet our team
We are the most experienced 3v3 football organisers in the World with a combined 50 years of active involvement with the format.
- Anders WenneslandFounder & Managing DirectorAnders is the founder of BazookaGoal and the inventor of the 3v3 mobile pitch concept. He organised the first 3v3 national mega-tournament in Norway in 2004 and the first UK mobile pitch tournament 15 years later. He has been an active influencer helping to convince European Football Federations to introduce 3v3 as official match format for the younger age groups.
- Hardy BrueningCo-FounderHardy has 10 years of experienced as event coordinator in Real Madrid Clinics Western Europe and has now been running 3v3 Germany (3v3 Deutschland) for three years. He is also the European Sales Manager for BazookaGoal, establishing official partnerships with around 80% of the Regional Football Federations.
- Finn Ove SoftingCo-FounderFinn Ove might be the world's most experienced 3v3 tournament organizer. Since he founded 3v3 Norway in 2012, he has been personally running more than 200 mega-events with a total participation of 400000+ players. He is currently also responsible for running the Norwegian Football Federation's own Santander 3v3 League.
- Mike MelvinCo-founderMike is the founder MYSL, one of the most successful youth football leagues in the UK, and has been successfully developing and running 3v3 UK for the past 5 years. 3v3 UK is organizing the FA's Young Lionesses Talent ID events across England and is currently assisting the National FA's small-sided games pilot scheme.
- Jake PappasManaging Director of AirPitch USAJake is combining his experience from coaching with his job as Director of North America for AirPitch and BazookaGoal. Jake is also the engine behind the development of the 3v3 USA State license program and tournament organization.
- Dan StratfordKick It OwnerDan is the owner of the Kick It 3v3 Soccer brand and the state license holder for Colorado. He is developing the marketing strategy for AirPitch and 3v3 USA utilizing is more than 20 years as a leader in digital marketing space.
Our history
3v3 World was created in 2023, as a global extension of the 3v3 Europe project which has been in development for more than 20 years.
Already back in 2004, we launched the World's first pitch-boundary 3v3 tournament "VG Cup" in Norway together with a national newspaper as sponsor.
A year later, the concept was exported to Denmark, where the "Jyske3ball" tournament took the country with storm and was rewarded UEFA Grassroots Event of the Year 2008 . The Danish FA became the first to officially introduce 3v3 as match format for the youngest players.
3v3 Norway was formally established in 2012 and quickly grew to become the 3rd. largest football tournament of all formats, seeing an average participation number of 800 players per day.
The Norwegian FA introduced 3v3 match format in 2017 and recently launched 3v3 Santander league in collaboration with 3v3 Norway. The Swedish FA followed suit a year later.
In 2018, we launched 3v3 UK and organised tournaments in professional club's venues, including Liverpool FC and Manchester City academies.
Then in 2019, we launched 3v3 Germany and have been organising 3v3 "Funino" tournaments in collaboration with regional FAs and supplying our specialist 3v3 equipment to clubs and tournaments all over the country.
In 2020, the German FA announced the introduction of 3v3 match format, leading to an explosion of demand for tournaments and equipment. The AirPitch inflatable system was launched after a year of testing.
The 3v3 Europe National Licensing program is established in 2021 with the aim to spread the fun and excitement of 3v3 football everywhere.
A year later, the concept was exported to Denmark, where the "Jyske3ball" tournament took the country with storm and was rewarded UEFA Grassroots Event of the Year 2008 . The Danish FA became the first to officially introduce 3v3 as match format for the youngest players.
3v3 Norway was formally established in 2012 and quickly grew to become the 3rd. largest football tournament of all formats, seeing an average participation number of 800 players per day.
The Norwegian FA introduced 3v3 match format in 2017 and recently launched 3v3 Santander league in collaboration with 3v3 Norway. The Swedish FA followed suit a year later.
In 2018, we launched 3v3 UK and organised tournaments in professional club's venues, including Liverpool FC and Manchester City academies.
Then in 2019, we launched 3v3 Germany and have been organising 3v3 "Funino" tournaments in collaboration with regional FAs and supplying our specialist 3v3 equipment to clubs and tournaments all over the country.
In 2020, the German FA announced the introduction of 3v3 match format, leading to an explosion of demand for tournaments and equipment. The AirPitch inflatable system was launched after a year of testing.
The 3v3 Europe National Licensing program is established in 2021 with the aim to spread the fun and excitement of 3v3 football everywhere.
Four new National Licensees where established in 2022, including 3v3 France, 3v3 Switzerland, 3v3 Spain, 3v3 Denmark.
2023: The 3v3 World is established, launching 3v3 USA and 3v3 Canada with the aim to reach all continents within 2026. The 3v3 UK regional license program gained momentum and several County FAs signed agreements for small-sided football collaboration. Arsenal FC becomes the first Premier League club to purchase AirPitches for use in their academy training.
Design Patents are filed for the AirPitch in the UK and USA, followed by a utility Patent application that will be expanded globally.
2024: 3v3 World has expanded further to 3v3 Mexico, 3v3 Poland, 3v3 Sweden, and 3v3 Ireland. Agreements are also made with 3v3 South Africa and 3v3 Nigeria. 3v3 UK has gained near 20 regional licensees.
3v3 World also helped organise a national 3v3 tour with the German FA and Volkswagen and we were selected by the English FA to run all their Young Lionesses TalentID days.
Notable new customers includes: Manchester City, Newcastle, and Real Madrid, all purchasing and integrating AirPitches in their academies. Newcastle also purchased a 5v5 AirPitch for use by their men's team, which kicks off a new level thinking for our organisation.
New AirPitch designs have launched, including the unique 1v1 "Beehive" AirPitch as well as several innovative, modular, configurations protected by our utility patent pending.
We are the world's largest 3v3 tournament organiser and we keep pushing the boundaries for small-sided football events.
Keep watching this space...
HISTORY OF 3V3
3v3 Europe history in pictures 2004-2023
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