Shaquille O’Neal set for Reebok return as president 25 years after leaving to start own shoe company
Shaquille O’Neal has returned to Reebok after quitting the company 25 years ago to launch his shoe line. Allen Iverson will be the company’s vice president of basketball, reporting to O’Neal. In 1992, Reebok signed the first superstar, Lakers great Magic Johnson.
According to Boardroom, Authentic Brands Group intends to reintroduce Reebok as a basketball shoe superpower. ABG paid $2.46 billion to purchase Reebok from Adidas in March 2022, with Shaq among its largest investors.
“We just want to do things differently,” O’Neal said in a statement. “That’s what we were best known for back then and what we want to stay true to now.”
Todd Krinsky, who founded Reebook in 1992 with Shaquille O’Neal as their first prominent athlete, was named CEO last year. Allen Iverson, another former Reebok athlete, was also named vice president of Reebok Basketball.
As president, O’Neal’s responsibilities include player recruitment and company growth. With a net worth of over $400 million, the four-time NBA champion knows a thing or two about business.
“A big part of my role will be leveraging my network to build bridges, connect the brand with players and help those players develop through their partnership with Reebok,” O’Neal said.
Shaquille O’Neal became a member of the Authentic Brands Group in 2015. He has a close commercial relationship with the corporation that oversees the estates of celebrities such as Muhammad Ali and Elvis Presley.
Shaquille O’Neal left Reebok in 1998 for what reason?
In 1998, Shaquille O’Neal was set to sign a five-year, $40 million contract deal with Reebok. The popularity of his signature sneakers like “Shaq Attaq” and “Shaqnosis” meant that Shaq would have made a lot of money in addition to his new deal.
However, O’Neal unexpectedly parted ways with the firm after being approached by a mother who couldn’t afford his children’s shoes. The legend of the Los Angeles Lakers related the story on the “Full Send” podcast two years ago.
“One day, this lady, she’s ripping me into half. ‘You motherf***ers! You’re charging these babies all this money for these shoes.’ So, I had like $2,000 in my pocket, and I was like, ‘Ma’am, I don’t make the prices. Here you go.”
“And she smacked the money in my hand and said, ‘Why don’t you motherf***ers make an affordable shoe?'” And then I thought to myself, ‘You know what? She is correct.’ So I terminated connections with Reebok that day.”
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