'SoccerSolver' closes its first round of funding

How much does it cost to build a product the football industry genuinely likes? In our case, a little over a year of work: more than 16 algorithms developed, more than 400 meetings with investment funds, more than 14 people working on this full-time (not counting collaborators), more than 750 million data points processed one by one, more than 546,000 transfers analyzed, and more than 10 years of historical data. Also more than 200 validation meetings with people from MIT, Harvard, Y Combinator, data analysts, and club owners — listening, correcting, and starting over until we landed on a product that solved a real problem for clubs.

Along the way we were fortunate to be selected as one of MIT's eight scientific startups. It was an important boost, but it was just that: a boost. And even with all this work, we still have only a fraction of what remains to be built — and sometimes, even so, it still isn't enough.

Today, after a good while working almost in silence, we can finally share something we closed some time ago: our first investment round, worth €850,000 (€700,000 pre-seed + €150,000 family and friends).

How much does it cost to build a product the football industry genuinely likes? In our case, a little over a year of work: more than 16 algorithms developed, more than 400 meetings with investment funds, more than 14 people working on this full-time (not counting collaborators), more than 750 million data points processed one by one, more than 546,000 transfers analyzed, and more than 10 years of historical data. Also more than 200 validation meetings with people from MIT, Harvard, Y Combinator, data analysts, and club owners — listening, correcting, and starting over until we landed on a product that solved a real problem for clubs.

Along the way we were fortunate to be selected as one of MIT's eight scientific startups. It was an important boost, but it was just that: a boost. And even with all this work, we still have only a fraction of what remains to be built — and sometimes, even so, it still isn't enough.

Today, after a good while working almost in silence, we can finally share something we closed some time ago: our first investment round, worth €850,000 (€700,000 pre-seed + €150,000 family and friends).

There's one detail that makes this round especially meaningful for us: we closed it when the company still hadn't earned a single euro and had no clubs signed. A pre-revenue round, resting mainly on the work done up to that point and on the trust of those who saw it up close. Today the company is already working with clubs, whose names we'll announce over the coming weeks.

This investment doesn't change who we are, but it does give us something very valuable: time. With this round we have a little over two years of runway ahead to keep hiring better people, grow the team, and finish turning what began as a research study into a company that provides real service to clubs.

There's one detail that makes this round especially meaningful for us: we closed it when the company still hadn't earned a single euro and had no clubs signed. A pre-revenue round, resting mainly on the work done up to that point and on the trust of those who saw it up close. Today the company is already working with clubs, whose names we'll announce over the coming weeks.

This investment doesn't change who we are, but it does give us something very valuable: time. With this round we have a little over two years of runway ahead to keep hiring better people, grow the team, and finish turning what began as a research study into a company that provides real service to clubs.

Perhaps what surprised us most in the whole process was how the investors arrived. We contacted more than 400 funds and investors actively seeking financing, but in the end much of this round didn't come from there — it came from meetings where we were simply presenting the product to potential clients and people in the sector, and it was they who ended up asking whether they could invest.

That's how this first round of smart money came together, bringing in sporting directors, business angels, and professionals connected to clubs in the Premier League, LaLiga, Saudi Arabia, and other major European competitions. That professional football's own people — including profiles from the Premier League — chose to invest in SoccerSolver is, for us, one of the most important validations we could receive.

Perhaps what surprised us most in the whole process was how the investors arrived. We contacted more than 400 funds and investors actively seeking financing, but in the end much of this round didn't come from there — it came from meetings where we were simply presenting the product to potential clients and people in the sector, and it was they who ended up asking whether they could invest.

That's how this first round of smart money came together, bringing in sporting directors, business angels, and professionals connected to clubs in the Premier League, LaLiga, Saudi Arabia, and other major European competitions. That professional football's own people — including profiles from the Premier League — chose to invest in SoccerSolver is, for us, one of the most important validations we could receive.

One thing we want to make clear: the source code, the algorithms, and all our internal processes remain, and will continue to remain, the exclusive property of the company. None of it is shared with any investor.

Our technology has a specific goal: to become the bridge between data providers and clubs, helping information translate into better sporting and economic decisions.

This announcement isn't a finish line — above all it's a responsibility. We keep investing in product, in research, and in the team to prove, step by step, that predictive analytics can genuinely help professional football. And this round is only the beginning of that road.

One thing we want to make clear: the source code, the algorithms, and all our internal processes remain, and will continue to remain, the exclusive property of the company. None of it is shared with any investor.

Our technology has a specific goal: to become the bridge between data providers and clubs, helping information translate into better sporting and economic decisions.

This announcement isn't a finish line — above all it's a responsibility. We keep investing in product, in research, and in the team to prove, step by step, that predictive analytics can genuinely help professional football. And this round is only the beginning of that road.

'SoccerSolver' closes its first investment round at €850,000

'SoccerSolver' closes its first investment round at €850,000

'SoccerSolver' closes its first investment round at €850,000

'SoccerSolver' closes its first investment round at €850,000