4 Watches To Be On The Lookout For At Euro Cup 2016

SPOTTING & SPONSORSHIP

It’s well-known that the paths between football stars and luxury watches can often crisscross with one another and not just since Diego Maradona’s unconventional take on a GMT complication (wearing two watches at once) or David Beckham’s role as a Breitling brand ambassador. With the quadrennial UEFA European Championship almost on our doorstep, here are a handful of watches you should definitely keep an eye out for.

4. Hublot Big Bang Unico Retrograde Chronograph

Just in time for Euro 2016, the Swiss manufacturer has launched its Big Bang Unico Retrograde Chronograph, which comes as close as possible to having the functionality of a referee timepiece like no other mechanical luxury watch before it. Thanks to the assistance of a bi-retrograde module, the timekeeper’s hand jumps to 0 both after 45 minutes for each half of the game as well as when 15 minutes have passed for the break. This feature also takes into account injury time as well as the possibility of a match going into overtime. This very limited Hublot edition of only 100 pieces has a manufacture calibre that can be admired via its sapphire case back, alongside the UEFA Champions League logo that has been placed in the middle of the movement.

3. IWC Portugieser Yacht-Club

Football players and their coaches (well, at least some of them), are a notoriously superstitious lot. There’s a widespread story of how the German coach Jogi Löw wore his lucky charm, a blue cashmere pullover, all the way to the semi-finals of the European Championship in 2012, in order to continue a fortunate streak of luck. In honour of the German national football team, IWC Schaffhausen launched a limited edition just in time for the World Cup 2014 final, known as the IWC Big Pilot Edition DFB.

Jogi Löw was often seen wearing a Portugieser Yacht-Club Chronograph at the Football World Championship in 2014. How it turned out is well-known and in that same vein, it’s entirely in the realm of possibilities that a luxury watch talisman this time around will play a role in the final result. However, don’t place all your bets on it. According to Jögi Löw, he places a significant emphasis on outfit elements that perfectly combine with one another, and it’s entirely possible that he will once again look towards other versions from the classy watch blacksmith based in Schaffhausen for Euro 2016.

2. Rolex Submariner

No other mechanical watch is so enthusiastically worn by football players as the Rolex Submariner, and this also rings true for the Euro 2016 tournament in France. The Italian winger Lorenzo Insigne owns a “Sub” as well as the Swiss national player and Arsenal midfielder, Granit Xhaka. Both players prefer the classical version with a black dial in stainless steel. The French striker star Karim Benzema, not active at this year’s tournament, shows off his colourful nature with a blue version. Even if he’s spotted sporadically sitting in the audience, it’s unknown if such a player at odds with the French football association (due to an impending court case) will be wearing a timepiece with a dial and bezel adorned with the colours of the French national football team.

1. TAG Heuer Formula 1 Cristiano Ronaldo L.E.

Many football fans have changed their negative opinion about Ronaldo after Alvaro Arbeloa tweeted a photo of his new watch in 2014. The timekeeper that appeared in the photo was a Bulgari Diagono that Arbeloa, just like many other players from Real Madrid, received as a Christmas present and a gesture of recognition from Ronaldo. Here’s the kicker. Ronaldo, an avid watch aficionado, was employed as a brand ambassador in the service of the traditional manufacturer TAG Heuer, and not the Italian luxury watch brand Bulgari. When the limited edition of Audemars Piguet Royal Oak in honour of Lionel Messi launched, it seemed like only a matter of time until his perennial rival would also receive one.

Last year, the time finally came and under Jean Claude Biver’s guidance, TAG Heuer began to make the brand more accessible for a younger audience. Its recipe: a Formula 1 with a black-PVD coated case, the addition of the CR7 symbol and green details, and the official timepiece of the Portuguese Superstar is ready for the Euro 2016 playing field.