Papa John’s to Culminate 25th Anniversary by Ringing in New Year at Times Square

“Papa” John Schnatter to Deliver Pizzas to Times Square 2010 Crews and Participate in Special “Confetti Drop” During Countdown Celebration

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In celebration of an unforgettable 25th anniversary, Papa John’s, the world’s third-largest pizza chain, is ringing in the New Year at one of the world’s most famous New Year’s Eve parties – New York City’s Times Square.

“Papa John’s is excited to be a part of this iconic celebration which, like our pizza, brings friends and families together.”

As part of the festivities, Times Square revelers may have the opportunity to be “Papa” John’s co-stars as the company captures footage for a potential future “Papa’s in the House” commercial, part of the company’s new documentary-style series of advertisements in which Schnatter surprises customers with pizza deliveries.

Schnatter will also take the stage above the crowd to lead the crowd in a special chant before releasing thousands of pieces of confetti into the crowd which will include a promo code good for a unique offer available at www.papajohns.com.

“I can’t think of a better place than Times Square to reflect on the end of a tremendous 2009 and kick off an even bigger year ahead,” said John Schnatter, (top centered  photo)  Papa John’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer. “Papa John’s is excited to be a part of this iconic celebration which, like our pizza, brings friends and families together.”

New Year’s Eve is one of the top five busiest nights of the year for Papa John’s, which expects to sell nearly 5 million pizza slices (more than 600,000 pizzas) throughout the U.S.

As the first pizza company to introduce nationwide online ordering, Papa John’s also plans to bring the thrills of Times Square to all their loyal fans by featuring a live video stream on Papa John’s Facebook fan page, www.facebook.com/papajohns, of the action in New York.

Throughout the Webcast, Papa John’s will reveal special promotion codes good for pizzas ordered online.

Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA) is the world's third largest pizza company.

 For nine of the last 10 years, consumers have rated Papa John's No. 1 in customer satisfaction among all national pizza chains in the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).

 Papa John's also was honored by Restaurants & Institutions Magazine (R&I) with the 2009 Gold Award for Consumers’ Choice in Chains in the pizza segment, ranked first among pizza companies in the 2008 Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index, and was named 2007 Pizza Today Chain of the Year. For more information about the company or to order pizza online, visit Papa John's at www.papajohns.com.

Contact: Tish Muldoon, 502-261-4987tish_muldoon@papajohns.com