He’s a chicken sandwich mogul and Candyman now, but Shaquille O’Neal is back to his pepperoni roots. Papa John’s is continuing its longstanding relationship with its biggest brand maker with the return of Shaq-a-Roni. The super-size pizza like its namesake is on the menu for a limited time starting October 15. It’s a little surprising as O’Neal cordially severed ties with Papa John’s in early 2024. The Shaq-a-Roni originated as part of his original deal. So how does he get paid for this one?

The Shaq-a-Roni’s origin story is in a good cause. O’Neal has spearheaded the pizza titan’s revival with his community outreach and he’s still doing that by bringing back the Shaq-a-Roni for the fifth consecutive year.

In 2019, Papa John’s reputation was on the decline. They needed something larger than life and didn’t have to look further than their longtime franchisee, Shaquille O’Neal. He received an endorsement royalty, stock, and a place on the board. With his arrival, they debuted the Shaq-a-Roni, a super-sized classic pepperoni pizza like the one O’Neal is a big fan of. Proceeds from this pizza’s sales went to different philanthropic initiatives.

But in February, O’Neal announced he won’t be seeking re-election to the board. He completed his term in May to focus on his new ventures, including Big Chicken and Shaq-a-licious XL Gummies.

Just when fans were questioning if they’d ever get their giant pepperoni pizza fix again, Papa John’s and Shaquille O’Neal announced “Shaq-a-Roni szn” is back.

$1 from the $12.99 product will go to The Papa John’s Foundation, which has been standard practice for five years. In the past, proceeds from its sales have gone to The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation-backed Boys and Girls Club, helped support Shaq-A-Claus initiatives, and also towards helping displaced restaurant employees during the 2020 pandemic. The Boys and Girls Club rolled out the Healthy Living Through Access and Nutritional Education program under Papa John’s and its big-hearted director.

But it’s a bit of a head-scratcher how this deal works out for Shaq after stepping away from the board.

The Shaq-a-Roni mogul is still thriving

Shaquille O’Neal’s franchise arrangements are independent of his stock-for-endorsement deal with Papa John’s and will remain his primary connection to the global chain. O’Neal renewed the latter arrangement in 2022, increasing his presence within the pizza empire.

A year before, he turned Big Chicken Shaq into a franchising chain. In 2024, there are 300+ locations in development, including opening new ones in Fort Worth and Livonia recently. He’s taken most of his experience as a franchisee of Papa John’s to make multi-unit deals in every state without interfering in his commitments to Papa John’s.

The 2022 Papa John’s contract was worth $5.6 million and came with 56.9K. That’s a big slice of a $1.69 billion (as of October 2024) pie. Fun fact: you can get over 130 million Shaq-a-Ronis for the entire market value of Papa John’s.

While $1 of that $12.99 goes to charity, $0.20 goes to Shaq in royalties. Through limited sale periods in four years, Shaq-a-Roni has raised $13.1 million towards community efforts. That would mean Papa John’s sold roughly 13 million pizzas and Shaq easily made $2.5 million through the Shaq-a-Roni.

Just like his franchises, his spot on the board (or lack thereof) isn’t included in this arrangement. When he announced he wouldn’t be seeking re-election, he confirmed it’s not the end of their partnership.

“While my other business commitments make it challenging to extend my board service for another term, I am looking forward to continuing my partnership with Papa Johns, a brand I’ve loved since my days playing basketball at LSU,” was Shaq’s statement in February 2024.

Going by his social media updates, Shaq was already developing Shaq-a-licious gummies with Hershey’s after a visit to the Pennsylvania factory in January. He’s also a Reebok executive and touring DJ. Understandably, these new commitments were a bit difficult to manage while on the Papa John’s board.

Shaq remains an endorser and stockholder, as well as the face of the Shaq-a-Roni. Without governing from the top sport of this pizza empire, Shaquille O’Neal still spearheads its charity while making a pretty penny.

The Shaq-a-Roni has been available to Papa Rewards members since October 14, and then to all customers from 21 October.