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John Riccitiello's track record as a CEO

From Wilson Sporting Goods to Unity, here's the colorful history of John Riccitiello as a CEO.

Donovan Erskine

July 20, 2022 12:45 PM

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John Riccitiello is well known around the gaming space as the man who currently serves as CEO of Unity, and previously had a couple stints at EA before that. He’s a bit of a polarizing figure, and has had a long history of leading various companies before landing at his current gig. With that in mind, let’s take a look back at John Riccitiello’s track record as a CEO.

Wilson Sporting Goods

In 1993, John Riccitiello was named the CEO of Wilson Sporting Goods, his first time holding such a title. This came after he worked at both Clorox and PepsiCo. He also served as the Managing Director at Häagen-Dazs.

Sara Lee Bakery Worldwide

In 1996, John Riccitiello left Wilson Sporting Goods to become the CEO of Sara Lee Bakery Worldwide. However, this would only last for just over a year, as Riccitiello would leave in September of 1997 to join the video game industry.

Electronic Arts

John Riccitiello joined Electronic Arts in October 1997. He was the company’s COO until 2004, when he became CEO. During his time at EA, he established himself in the gaming industry and oversaw the release and distribution of the company’s major products. He would leave EA a couple of years later to co-found an equity firm called Elevation Partners. Riccitiello would return to his CEO role at EA in 2007.

During his second stint with Electronic Arts, Riccitiello presided over the company and oversaw its major releases. In 2013, John Riccitiello resigned from EA after continued poor financial performance at the company.

Unity

In 2014, John Riccitiello became the CEO of Unity, the company that created and operates the popular Unity gaming engine. During his time at Unity, the company made some major acquisitions, including Weta Digital and Parsec. It also saw some financial hardship, missing revenue and EPS expectations, and laying off hundreds of employees. In recent quarters, Unity lowered its financial guidance significantly. Riccitiello still serves as the CEO of Unity, and found himself in hot water quite recently over some insulting comments made towards mobile developers.

That’s the history of John Riccitiello as a CEO from the early 90s up to modern day. For more on the business side of the video game industry and the major players within it, Shacknews has you covered.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a journalist from Maryland. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge film fanatic and will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_