Reebok is still paying Allen Iverson $800,000 a year as a result of the lifetime endorsement deal they signed him to in 2001, and CEO Matt O'Toole believes he's worth every penny.
"He's an iconic personality," O'Toole said on the Bloomberg Business of Sports podcast. "Let's get on a plane to Shanghai together. You bring Allen Iverson into a market like that. I'll stand firmly that he has a big place in basketball and sports history."
Iverson's lifetime deal was an extension of the 10-year, $50-million contract he initially received from Reebok - then led by CEO Paul Fireman - after being selected No. 1 overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1996 NBA Draft. It includes a $32-million trust fund that he'll be able to access when he turns 55 in 2030.
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"He has a place in our heritage, and there is a group of consumers who want to connect to that," O'Toole said. "He's relevant for a lot of our consumers."
