Today Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) announced the addition of veteran National Football League executive Johanna Faries to the company’s Esports Leagues leadership team, where she will serve as Head of Product for the Call of Duty® World League. Faries brings over a decade of experience from the NFL with an emphasis on business and fan development. In her new role, Faries will oversee strategic leadership, business operations and product development for the Call of Duty World League.

“The addition of Johanna to our leadership team demonstrates our commitment to maintaining a world class organization with the objective of further expanding our shared vision in esports,” said Pete Vlastelica, President and CEO of Activision Blizzard Esports Leagues. “Johanna has a proven track record throughout her tenure with the NFL of leading key business initiatives and driving fan engagement. She is a great addition to our organization and I look forward to working with her in her new role.”

“We’re excited for Johanna to join the Call of Duty World League team. She brings a ton of experience at the highest-level connecting players and fans together through their love of competition,” said Rob Kostich, EVP and GM, Call of Duty. “She’s a perfect fit for the CWL. We have great momentum behind the league and are about to start our most exciting season yet. We’re committed to delivering the best experience to our fans, our players and the entire community, and look forward to Johanna helping us deliver on that promise.”

“To join a world class organization like Activision Blizzard in this role is as exciting as it is an honor,” said Faries. “With esports exploding in popularity, there is no doubt that Call of Duty is well positioned to be a major force in shaping the future of professional competition as we know it.”

While at the National Football League, Faries held a number of leadership roles across marketing, league initiative strategy, fan and business development, partnerships, and consumer products. During her tenure, she also served in a broad range of diversity, inclusion, and mentorship programs.

The CWL continues to gain momentum as the 2019 season featuring the biggest prize purse in league history of $6 million kicks off December 7 with the CWL Las Vegas Open. Faries will be based at Activision’s Santa Monica headquarters.

About Activision Blizzard

Activision Blizzard, Inc., a member of the Fortune 500 and S&P 500, is the world's most successful standalone interactive entertainment company. We delight hundreds of millions of monthly active users around the world through franchises including Activision's Call of Duty®, Destiny, and Skylanders®; Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Hearthstone®, Diablo®, StarCraft®, and Heroes of the Storm®; and King's Candy Crush™, Pet Rescue™, Bubble Witch™, and Farm Heroes™. The company is one of the Fortune "100 Best Companies to Work For®." Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Blizzard has operations throughout the world. More information about Activision Blizzard and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activisionblizzard.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Blizzard's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future, are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause Activision Blizzard's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include the factors identified in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and Activision Blizzard does not assume any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

ACTIVISION, CALL OF DUTY® and CALL OF DUTY® WORLD LEAGUE are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners.

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