Gaming Veteran Mike Ybarra Appointed as CEO of PrizePicks
Founder and CEO Adam Wexler Named Executive Chairman
ATLANTA (August 5th, 2024) - PrizePicks, the largest daily fantasy sports operator in North America, today announced the appointment of Mike Ybarra, former President of Blizzard Entertainment, as the company's Chief Executive Officer. Ybarra will join the Board of PrizePicks and succeeds Adam Wexler, PrizePicks’ Founder and CEO, who will be transitioning to the role of Executive Chairman.
“I am unbelievably proud of what we have built at PrizePicks. Through our culture of constant innovation and having a player-first mindset, PrizePicks has achieved explosive growth,” said Wexler. “Attracting someone with Mike's background is a true testament to our legitimacy and success to date, and it is a great honor to partner with him. Mike’s track record of introducing fan favorite games, driving development initiatives and scaling large customer bases will propel us to new heights.”
Since founding PrizePicks in 2017, Wexler has led the company’s transformation from a nascent startup into the leading daily fantasy sports company in North America, with a profitable, rapidly growing business model. With over 10 million community members and billions of dollars in awarded winnings, PrizePicks has made daily fantasy sports accessible to all and has grown tremendously under Wexler’s leadership
“On behalf of the entire Board, I would like to thank Adam for his tireless contributions as PrizePicks’ Founder, building this organization into one of the leading fan engagement platforms from the ground up,” said Jon Hallett, member of PrizePicks’ Board of Managers. “Under his tenure, PrizePicks has experienced a period of remarkable growth and enters this transition with an incredible amount of momentum and strength. Mike Ybarra is the right leader for the next phase of the company's journey, and we are pleased that he will be partnering with Adam to unlock future expansion opportunities.”
Ybarra brings more than 25 years of leadership and operational experience in technology and gaming at large, public companies. Most recently, he served as President of Blizzard Entertainment where he was responsible for the entire portfolio P&L and growth achievements. Prior to Blizzard Entertainment, Ybarra spent nearly 20 years at Microsoft as a Corporate Vice President in leadership roles within the Windows and Xbox divisions.
Reflecting on his appointment, Ybarra commented, “I am impressed with the passion, positive energy and incredible team at PrizePicks and want to thank Adam and the Board for this opportunity. PrizePicks is the most exciting company in sports entertainment today, and it's an honor to join as CEO. I have tremendous respect for the foundation that Adam has built and look forward to working with him and the team.”
Biographical Information
Mike Ybarra is a veteran in the technology and entertainment industry with deep experience in fostering creative environments that enable teams, partners and businesses to succeed. As a Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, he spent over 20 years in development, product management and leadership roles spanning Windows and Gaming – helping to create software and entertainment that reached billions of people around the globe. Most recently, Mike was President of Blizzard Entertainment where he drove organizational, culture and business growth while striving to exceed player expectations across beloved IP such as Warcraft, Diablo and Overwatch.
About PrizePicks
PrizePicks is the largest skill-based daily fantasy sports operator and the fastest-growing sports company in North America according to the 2023 Inc. 5000 rankings. Recognized as the Fantasy Sports Business of the Year by the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association and as the Fantasy/DFS Operator of the Year by EGR North America, PrizePicks is a fun, fast and simple version of daily fantasy sports. Founded and headquartered in Atlanta, GA, the company was recently recognized as a Top Workplace by the Atlanta Journal Constitution. For more information, visit www.prizepicks.com or learn more about signing up with a PrizePicks promo code.
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Elisa Richardson