Reebok Announces Shaquille O'Neal as President of Basketball

Reebok has officially made the global, irreverent sports icon and long-time supporter, Shaquille O’Neal its official President of Basketball. As head of Reebok Basketball, Shaq will be bringing his expertise in the sport to drive Reebok’s long-term strategy to re-emerge into the sport and performance basketball.

Shaq was first signed to Reebok in his rookie year in 1992. At the time, it was the brand’s biggest endorsement deal ever and later evolved into the most prolific and impactful athlete-brand partnerships in the industry. His first signature shoe, the “Shaq Attaq” was followed by a slew of disruptive ad campaigns, iconic till this day. As Reebok’s President of Basketball, O’Neal’s role is to lead the basketball category in strategy and also cultivate partnerships and relationships with athletes and organizations to help expand the brand’s reach and market share. Reebok’s deal with Shaq catapulted the brand’s presence in the basketball world in the ’90s, bringing some of the game’s most dominant players to their roster. This included Allen Iverson, who joins O’Neal as the Vice President of Reebok Basketball.

Todd Krinsky, Reebok CEO said, “We are thrilled to be expanding upon our partnership with Shaquille with this historic appointment. As an athlete, he made an incredible imprint on not only our brand, but the entire sport and culture of basketball.” In 2021, together with Authentic Brands Group (Authentic) CEO Jamie Salter, and President Nick Woodhouse, O’Neal played a major role in bringing Reebok into the vast portfolio of iconic global brands owned by the company. O’Neal, an Authentic shareholder, is known as an exceptional brand partner for companies including JCPenney, Papa Johns and Carnival. Adding Reebok to his list of endeavours, Shaq seems excited about his role sharing simply, “We’re back, baby! Get ready.” O’Neal and Reebok will disclose more details of the new strategy in basketball in the coming months as Reebok looks to return to the court in 2025 and beyond.

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