Roblox Hires Joost Hagesteijn as First General Manager for Europe

Why It Matters

The hire signals Roblox’s commitment to deepen its European footprint, unlocking new creator revenue and strengthening its competitive position against other gaming platforms. It also provides a dedicated leadership layer to scale operations and ensure a safe, engaging environment for millions of users.

Key Takeaways

• Europe contributed $945 M revenue and $1.4 B bookings in 2025
• Roblox’s European DAUs topped North America in Q4 2025
• Joost Hagesteijn brings Snap’s Northern Europe expansion experience
• Role will drive studio support, partnerships, and community safety

Pulse Analysis

Roblox’s decision to install a dedicated general manager for Europe underscores the continent’s escalating importance in the metaverse economy. In 2025, the region generated $945 million in revenue and $1.4 billion in bookings, while daily active users (DAUs) surged past 34 million, overtaking North America in the final quarter. These metrics illustrate a shift in user concentration that compels the company to tailor its strategy, infrastructure, and monetization models to European tastes and regulatory environments.

The appointment of Joost Hagesteijn, a former Snap Inc. executive who led Northern Europe’s expansion from 2016 to 2023, brings seasoned expertise in scaling consumer platforms across diverse markets. Hagesteijn’s mandate includes aligning local studios with Roblox’s development tools, fostering commercial success for creators, and strengthening partnerships with brands and advertisers. By centralizing operational oversight, Roblox aims to accelerate creator earnings, improve safety protocols, and deepen community engagement—key factors for sustaining growth in a market where user expectations for content moderation and data privacy are especially high.

Industry observers see this move as a bellwether for the broader gaming and social‑media landscape, where regional leadership is becoming a competitive differentiator. As rivals like Epic Games and Microsoft intensify their European investments, Roblox’s focused leadership could translate into faster product rollouts, localized events, and tighter integration with European advertisers. The strategic emphasis on Europe positions Roblox to capture a larger share of the continent’s digital entertainment spend, potentially driving double‑digit revenue growth in the coming years.