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The most prestigious individual accolade a football player can win is the Ballon D’Or and earlier this week, PSG and French international Ousmane Dembélé lifted the award for his stellar 2024/25 season.
As always, award shows are the best time for the world’s biggest stars to dress up and rock exquisite timepieces on their wrist and a great chance for us to become detectives in spotting celebrities' watches.
This year’s Ballon D’Or award ceremony was no different with some of the most beautiful wristwatches on display ranging from Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Hublot watches.
Ousmane Dembélé & Richard Mille RM67-02 “Sébastien Ogier”
Winner Ousmane Dembélé lifted the Ballon D’Or trophy wearing the highly sought after Richard Mille RM67-02 “Sébastien Ogier.” Crafted out of Richard Mille’s innovative Carbon TPT®, this model weighs 32g with the colours of the French flag hand-painted on the bridges.
This is a watch made and worn by champions which Ousmane Dembélé is now part of having won the greatest and highest individual achievement a footballer can receive. Also, it is even further fitting considering Dembélé is a French international so wearing a piece with the colours of his flag painted on the bridges of the RM67-02 and lifting the Ballon D’Or in Paris must have felt truly special.
Lamine Yamal & Patek Philippe Cubitus 7128/1R
Lamine Yamal finished second to Ousmane Dembélé yet he remained in high spirits rocking the newly released Patek Philippe Cubitus in 18CT rose gold with the sunburst chocolate dial.
Patek Philippe first introduced three different models of the Cubitus towards the end of 2024. Unfortunately, this release did not go the way Patek Philippe were hoping for gaining controversy across the horological world due to the Cubitus’s unwearable 44mm case size and the Swiss brand’s lack of innovation and creativity.
But, the two Cubitus models released this year, including Yamal’s reference 7128/1R, were received better as the case sizes were smaller coming in at 40mm and consisted of stunning and simple configurations, like this model’s rose gold material and chocolate dial which is a hit no matter the brand or model.
Virgil Van Dijk & Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ultra Thin 26586TI
Virgil Van Dijk is a known collector of Audemars Piguet watches with many often getting confused as to whether he is an ambassador of the brand. We even spotted Van Dijk wearing a black ceramic Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar when renewing his contract towards the end of the 2024/25 season. At the 69th edition of the Ballon D’Or, Van Dijk wore the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ultra Thin in titanium with a smoked blue dial.
In 2019, Audemars Piguet released this Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar which is their thinnest QP incorporating the brand’s extremely thin in-house Calibre 5133. Additionally, this is a limited edition of only 200 pieces available worldwide but only really offered to the brand’s most exclusive clientele. So, Van Dijk owning this watch demonstrates his legendary status, maybe he deserves his own collection of Audemars Piguet watches blog…
Raphaël Varane & Patek Philippe Nautilus Travel Time 5990/1A
Raphaël Varane (pictured right) rocked one of the most sought after Patek Philippe models at the ceremony, wearing the Nautilus Travel Time reference 5990/1A. Crafted in stainless steel, this is a fairly complicated piece featuring the fly-back chronograph and dual-time functions displayed on top of an elegant sunburst blue gradient dial that fades out to a black rim.
Focusing on the movement, Patek Philippe incorporated two different complications for this model: the fly-back chronograph and dual-time. Fly-back chronographs are an advanced version of standard chronograph watches as fly-back chronographs allow for less margin of error and enhanced accuracy.
Buy Patek Philippe Nautilus 5990/1A-001 Stainless Steel Watch
- ▪Nautilus Travel Time Chronograph
- ▪Steel bracelet with Nautilus fold-over clasp
- ▪Automatic Movement
Patek’s travel time function is achieved through the use of pushers on the left side of the steel case, a skeletonised hour-hand and the visual display of “home” and “local” time. By simply pressing the pushers, you can set the “home" time whilst the skeletonised hand remains in place showing the “local” time. This is intended for efficiency, removing the need to adjust each timezone manually and simply adjust time using pushers.
Viktor Gyökeres & Patek Philippe Nautilus Moonphase 5712/1A
Arsenal striker and Swedish international, Viktor Gyökeres was spotted wearing an alternative sought after Patek Philippe timepiece. That was the Nautilus Moonphase reference 5712/1A in stainless steel with a simple, yet stunning blue gradient dial which is the most in-demand configuration of the Nautilus Moonphase.
Buy Patek Philippe Nautilus 5712/1A-001 Stainless Steel Watch
- ▪Black-blue Dial & Stainless steel case
- ▪Sapphire-crystal case back
- ▪Automatic Movement Caliber 240 PS IRM C LU
At the beginning of this year, Patek Philippe quietly discontinued the reference 5712/1A from their catalogue but once horological enthusiasts found out, it was major news. This is one of Patek’s staple timepieces being in production for almost 20 years!
Mamadou Sakho & Rolex Daytona 126576TBR
Former Liverpool and Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho (pictured left) wore an extremely rare Rolex watch at the Ballon D’Or ceremony. Sakho rocked an off-catalogue Rolex Daytona reference 126576TBR in platinum featuring the ice blue dial with diamond-set hour markers and a diamond-set bezel.
Off-catalogue Rolex watches are extremely rare, being offered to the Swiss brand’s VIP clientele, typically consisting of footballers. Here, we see a beautiful variation of the Daytona “Platona” which was released in 2013 and then altered in 2023 with the upgraded Calibre 4131 and an open caseback.
Since 2023, there have been many off-catalogue variations of the 126506 featuring diamond-set bezels, diamond-set hour markers and even a pavé diamond dial. Due to this, at Time 4 Diamonds, we have received many requests surrounding a customised Daytona inspired by this off-catalogue model.
Pau Cubarsí & Cartier Santos WSSA0071
Youngster Pau Cubarsí had a breakthrough campaign with Barcelona last season appearing in 35 LaLiga games and 13 UEFA Champions League fixtures. Cubarsí attended the event wearing a simple Cartier Santos in stainless steel with a blue dial.
The Cartier Santos is one of the most historical timepieces, first introduced in 1911 with the Santos-Dumont. To this day, the Santos remains true to its origins maintaining its simplistic and elegant square shaped design.
Gianluigi Donnarumma & Kross Studio MT1 Chronomètre Tourbillon 7 Jours MT1-TI
Goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma wore something extremely different to others, rocking the Kross Studio MT1 Chronomètre Tourbillon reference MT1-TI. This piece is crafted out of titanium worn comfortably with a black leather strap featuring an openworked dial showcasing the tourbillon movement.
Kross Studio is a very young brand, established in 2020 but has been part of some exciting projects and gained a strong reputation in the horological world. Kross Studio is a Swiss label demonstrating fine craftsmanship and possessing high knowledge regarding the history of Swiss watchmaking. They have produced timepieces inspired by popular entertainment shows and films like the Death Star Tourbillon (Star Wars) and the Batmobile Desk Clock (Batman.)
Chloe Kelly & Chopard Alpine Eagle 33 295384-5002
Like Donnarumma, England Lionesses attacker Chloe Kelly wore a different branded model than the conventional Rolex or Patek Philippe. Kelly wore a Chopard Alpine Eagle 33 in 18CT rose gold with diamonds set into the bezel and integrated bracelet. The Pink Dawn dial is expertly finished through galvanic treatment, with the design inspired by the iris of an eagle’s eye.
The Alpine Eagle was launched in 2019, inspired by Chopard’s own vintage model, the St. Moritz which was produced in the 1980s. The Alpine Eagle is a unisex watch, offered to both men and women with the collection full of various configurations to fit your needs. Commended for its versatility and use of in-house movements, the Chopard Alpine Eagle is extremely underrated.
Luis Figo & Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Tourbillon 645.QW.2012.RW
Luis Figo is one of football’s most iconic players, having played for Barcelona and Real Madrid, also winning a Ballon D’Or trophy himself in 2000. Figo was spotted wearing the Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Tourbillon crafted in black carbon paired with a white or black rubber strap in which Figo opted for the black one.
This is an innovative piece from Hublot due to the model’s 115 hour power reserve which is almost five days! There is even a 5-day-indicator at 8 o’clock that tells the wearer how much power the model has until it needs to be wound. This is an extremely rare piece from Hublot, limited to only 100 pieces worldwide!
