the sportswear brand Reebok was a British company founded in 1895 as 'Mercury Sports' by brothers Joe and Jeff Foster.  The brothers changed the company name in 1958 to Reebok, the name of a type of African antelope which they took from a South African dictionary.  Today the company is owned by the German sportswear giant adidas, the acquisition of Reebok by adidas gave each brand the opportunity to exploit the others strengths to increase revenue and market share.

the Reebok brand dramatically rose in popularity during the 1980's with the company's defining moment being the introduction of the Reebok Freestyle, a womans athletic shoe whose launch coincided with the decades aerobics phenomenon.  The iconic Reebok Freestyle crossed over to the streets becoming a fashion statement on the back of which Reebok produced a version for men which they called the Ex-O-Fit.  Reebok's 80's innovators also produced the Reebok pump a sports shoe that also crossed over from athletic sports footwear to fashionable casual wear.  The Reebok pump incorporated an air bladder which the wearer could inflate to the desired level through a small pump on the tongue of the shoe, this gave a tighter fit around the ankle allowing for more rigorous movement of the feet.

Reebok holds the exclusive rights to manufacturer authentic and replica Jerseys and kit for both the NFL (National Football League) American football league and the CFL (Canadian Football League) and are the official supplier of footwear for Major League Baseball.  Reebok also manufacture National Hockey League sportswear and equipment following it's acquisition of the hockey equipment manufacturer CCM (Canada Cycle and Motor company) in 2004.  In England Reebok sponsor the Premier League football club Bolton Wanderers whose home ground, the Reebok stadium, is named after the sportswear giant.  Other English Premier League sides who were sponsored by Reebok have moved across to the parent company adidas since their purchase of the brand.

in 2003 American rapper Jay-Z became the first non-athlete to have a signature shoe from Reebok and the "S Carter" became the company's fastest-ever selling shoe, Reebok later signed deals with other popular recording artists including 50 Cent and Nelly.

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