Virgil van Dijk parties with LeBron James and Jude Bellingham at Snoop Dogg launch in London

Virgil van Dijk partied with LeBron James in London on Thursday night as the pair met at the launch of Snoop Dogg’s new drink.

Van Dijk is currently taking a break before reporting back for training with Liverpool this summer, having led the Netherlands to the semi-finals at Euro 2024. He was at Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace in Shepherd’s Bush, London as he joined a host of A-list stars for the release of Snoop and Dr Dre’s Gin & Juice drink.

The drink takes its name from the rappers’ 1994 hit of the same name. To celebrate its launch in the UK, Van Dijk and more were invited to a special event, which also saw a surprise appearance from Eminem.

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Jude Bellingham, Idris Elba, Jeremy Renner and Shaquille O’Neal were among the stars to take to the red carpet. LeBron was also there, and was joined by USA teammates Anthony Davis, Bam Adebayo, Jason Tatum and Derrick White ahead of the Paris Olympics.

James had time though to meet up with Liverpool captain Van Dijk though as the pair were pictured together. They no doubt will have had plenty to talk about, with LeBron owning a stake in Liverpool’s owners FSG .

Van Dijk is also a huge basketball fan, and has spoken previously of his admiration for the LA Lakers superstar.

“I like basketball. Funnily enough, I look at all the top athletes at the highest level because I feel like they all have a big role, either as a big role model or for their team and community, and there are so many things you can learn,” Van Dijk said back in March (via The Independent ).

“The way they conduct themselves on the pitch or on court, also what they do in order to be great. There is LeBron, [Novak] Djokovic, Roger Federer, Tom Brady: I could name so many. I like to listen to these guys and learn with how they dealt being at the top and dealing with difficult moments but also good moments.”

Van Dijk has also taken inspiration from James’ motto ‘strive for greatness’. “That phrase that he uses is perfect,” Van Dijk said. “I want to achieve the most I can in life and get the maximum out of myself, the team and the position we are in. Every season is a challenge but we are in a special situation.”