An unlikely fashion collaboration? Victoria Beckham teams up with basketball star Shaquille O'Neal

Late last year Victoria Beckham announced an upcoming partnership with sportswear giant, Reebok and last night the designer celebrated the launch of her collection in Los Angeles, at an intimate event hosted by the Boston-based brand.

So far, so ordinary for a designer out to launch a new collaboration. Except that in this instance Beckham was welcomed to the brand family by another Reebok ambassador, and the man she says inspired her designs, the ex-Lakers basketball icon, Shaquille O’Neal.

Documented via Instagram, the two stars posed together for a series of hilarious snaps - Beckham’s petite 5’4’’ frame dwarfed by O’Neal’s towering 7’1’’ height. Beckham took to Instagram to comment on the height difference, with the caption ‘Chose today not to wear heels?!’.

Showcasing the sports luxe style that has cemented the Spice Girl turned designer as a style icon, and successful luxury designer, Beckham went for a minimal outfit, in loose-fit black trousers and her now-trademark white trainers. Both she and O’Neal wore variations of a t-shirt printed with O’Neal's LA Lakers number, 34, and cut a basketball jersey silhouette.

Later in the evening, the duo appeared together on James Corden’s Late Late Show wearing the same t-shirts, with Beckham swapping her trousers for a skinnier style and switching trainers for heeled pumps - a sartorial choice which made little impact on the height difference between the pair.

The t-shirts are our first glimpse of collaboration and will launch in May on Rebbok's website. The main collection, designed by Beckham, and inspired by Shaq, will launch later this year. Beckham also previewed a hoodie via Instagram, presumably part of the same collection, worn by her middle son, Romeo.

Commenting on the launch, Beckham said, ‘I had so much fun tonight, being welcomed into the Reebok family, by Shaq. The merch collection is really a celebration of him, the 90’s and the Reebok’s heritage.’ The collaboration couldn’t be more fitting - Reebok, Shaq and Victoria are all 1990s icons, and Beckham’s in-progress main collection, slated to launch later this year, is set to celebrate the legacy of all three.

Reebok has a history of partnering with women to deliver collections which inspire ‘confidence, power and strength’. Previous partners include model Gigi Hadid, singer Ariana Grande, gymnast Aly Raisman and singer and actress Teyana Taylor. ‘The Innovation Collective’ - the initiative under which Beckham’s collection will be launched has already partnered with designer’s including cult brand Vetements in a series of sock boots which were a sell-out success. The understated style that Beckham is now known for is a far cry from her 1990s ‘Posh Spice days’ - her sleek, minimal looks have made her a style icon alongside her status as successful runway designer. This sportswear collaboration sees her add another string to her bow.

As a subsidiary of Adidas, it wouldn’t be amiss to imagine that Reebok is hoping to replicate, or surpass the success of their parent company’s wildly successful collaboration with Stella McCartney. The increasing blurring of the lines between sportswear wear and fashion have bred a generation obsessed with sports luxe and athleisure. Victoria Beckham and Reebok is set to be the next big thing on this radar - we bet Shaq is proud (and a little surprised) to be considered her latest style muse.