American sporting icon and hero, Tom Brady sold all his memorabilia at an auction in collaboration with Sothteby’s, that commenced on the 10th of December and finished the next day. This included his NFL match-worn kits like helmets and jerseys, along with his watch collection including some insane pieces.
Whilst it remains unknown as to why Brady auctioned these items, he stated “I'm signifying a step out of my playing career, and recognising that others will cherish these items the way I value the ones in my collection,” hinting at his new plans outside of the NFL.
Brady also explained that “as you get older, you understand that time is everything. Where you put your energy is a direct reflection of your values,” inferring a deeper and personal reason to the auction.
The seven time Super Bowl winner’s luxury watch collection has been widely documented with some incredible pieces. 21 watches of Brady’s were sold at this auction for a remarkable $4.6 million, including his 1 of 1, bespoke AP Royal Oak Tourbillon. IWC Schaffhausen, Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille and Tudor watches were part of this auction, with some indications of concern for some brands.
(Image from Michael Tran/AFP, Getty Images, 2024)
IWC Schaffhausen
Opening this review of his auctioned watches are six IWC models. The former NFL superstar is a brand ambassador for IWC which brought a deeper connection to these models meaning the performance was heightened.
Starting with the Big Pilot’s Watch IW5036-05 (pictured top-left), estimated at $12,000 - $24,000, sold for a staggering $72,000 which was three to six times the amount it was suggested to be auctioned.
Similarly, the Pilot’s Watch IW3881-02 (pictured top-centre) was sold for $72,000 which soared massively above the estimated value of $12,000 - $18,000.
The two Pilot’s watches topped the IWC sale but there were other models that exceeded expectations hugely, like the Portugieser IW5007-01 in rose gold (pictured top right). This IWC model was estimated to sell for $5,000 - $10,000 finally selling for $45,600, more than four times as predicted which is insane.
The second Portugieser IW5022-18 in white gold (pictured bottom left) with a perpetual calendar gained a large sale of $60,000, again exceeding its estimated price.
The final two IWC models, IW3891-04 Pilot’s Watch Topgun Edition (pictured bottom centre) and IW5010-02 Big Pilot’s Watch Edition ‘Le Petit Prince’ (pictured bottom right) were part of the brand’s strong performance in this auction, selling for $42,000 and $28,800, respectively.
IWC managed to collect over $300,000 for Tom Brady which is incredible considering the market price and estimations for these models. Yes, it can be argued that the performance exceeded expectations due to the fact that Brady’s partnership with IWC heightens the significance and value of these watches.
However, this is still an amazing achievement for the brand, potentially increasing the brand’s reputation, so IWC have come out as huge winners from this auction!
Rolex
Part of Brady’s watch collection are a series of various Rolex models including some extremely special pieces that are incredibly sought after and rare.
Featured in Brady’s set of Rolex watches, there are some very intriguing pieces, including the GMT-Master II ‘Batman,' a beautiful platinum Day-Date model and an unusual two-tone Yacht-Master II. However, the main focus is on an extremely rare and special piece to the horological world and Rolex- the Daytona ‘John Player Special.
The Rolex Daytona ‘John Player Special’ is an extremely rare model, with the name referring to Lotus Formula One cars in 1972. The brand John Player & Sons sponsored the Lotus Formula One team, with the logo appearing hugely on the car. Lotus’s cars featured a colour combination of black and gold which is a similar configuration on this model.
This Daytona model reference 6241 is cast in 14K yellow gold which is different to today’s 18K yellow gold form, increasing the rarity element of this piece. An estimate of only 3,000 models were produced of the reference 6241, with a tenth of these 3,000 being manufactured in yellow gold. Furthermore, only a small fraction of the yellow gold models were paired with the ‘John Player Special’ configuration demonstrating how rare this watch is.
Due to the rarity of this Daytona model, combined with Tom Brady actually wearing this rare Daytona, it was not a surprise to see this watch sold for over $1,000,000, in fact it was exactly $1,140,000!
This wasn’t the only vintage Daytona model being auctioned, but also the reference 6265 in 18K yellow gold with the champagne dial and contrasted black subdials.
Launched in 1971, many improvements and upgrades were implemented into this reference, including a waterproof ‘Oyster’ case, screw-down waterproof pushers, and crown. Additionally, the movement received a slight upgrade to enhance the accuracy by replacing the balance. This vintage Daytona reference is a highly collectible piece and it sold for $186,000.
Other Rolex models sold at this auction include the GMT-Master II reference 126710BLNR with the blue-black bezel and oyster bracelet, also known as the ‘Batman.’ This model has a market price of £13,000 but sold for over four times the value at £60,000.
There was the beautiful Day-Date reference 228236TBR with an aesthetically pleasing configuration of the meteorite dial, diamond-set bezel and diamond baguette-cut hour markers. Cast in platinum alone is astonishing alone, the way light hits the metal is stunning. The meteorite dial is one of the best dials to be produced from Rolex, combined with diamond hour-markers and bezel, it is the perfect configuration. This piece sold for $168,000, exceeding the estimated value of this watch by some distance.
Lastly, is the Yacht-Master II in stainless steel and rose gold reference 116681. It is always an unusual sighting to see the youngest member of the Rolex sports watch family in one’s collection because of its status and reputation as well as its strange design. Even stranger, this model was sold for $60,000 which is somewhat crazy, does Tom Brady have that much of an impact on a watch? Clearly he does!
Patek Philippe
Only two Patek Philippe models to feature at the auction, also both vintage models with some interesting history. These are the Grand Complication ‘First Series’ 3970 (pictured top) and Nautilus ‘Jumbo’ 3700/11 (pictured bottom).
Introduced as one of Patek’s brand new models in 1976, the Nautilus reference 3700 took the horological world by storm, with the Nautilus range evolving and growing into one of the most successful and in-demand collections of Patek Philippe.
This 3700/11 in particular, was manufactured in 1982, 6 years after the very first Nautilus model was released. This stunning vintage piece sold for $132,000.
The Grand Complication piece is both stunning and an amazing art of craftsmanship, cast in yellow gold with an elegant white dial featuring Patek’s staple movements like the perpetual calendar.
Introduced to the world of horology in 1986, paired with the name ‘First Series’ as a reminder to show this was one of the first ever models released under the 3970 reference produced in 1986 and 1987; fewer than 100 pieces were made before the transition to the second series.
But what makes this piece even rarer is because of the movement number of this specific piece being number 875,001. Reading the Sotheby’s notes off this watch, scholars believe that the first ever 3700/11 had the movement number 875,000 meaning this 3700/11 that Brady had auctioned was the second ever model produced.
This exact piece was proven to have been manufactured in 1986, one of Patek’s most iconic models owned by the American sporting hero, sold for $312,000.
Audemars Piguet
Three models part of Audemars Piguet featured at this auction, two being extremely special pieces, including Tom Brady’s very own one-of-one Royal Oak Tourbillon.
Honestly, this was quite a shock to see Tom Brady put this watch in his auction implying that he really meant what he stated before this auction took place. For a luxury watch brand with an extremely large reputation like Audemars Piguet to give you the opportunity of owning your own bespoke one-of-one factory-set models, means you have legendary status and an impact to the world in some way.
This bespoke Royal Oak Tourbillon has a touching element on this watch that pays tribute to Brady’s success, featuring additional beautiful parts. Incorporated into this white gold Royal Oak tourbillon is a stunning diamond set bezel with the letters of his name replacing the hour markers also formed through the use of diamonds on a beautiful salmon dial displaying Audemars Piguet’s classic grande tapisserie pattern. In between Tom and Brady, there is a roman numeral seven in baguette-cut blue sapphires to symbolise the seven Superbowl victories the former NFL superstar collected.
An absolute masterpiece created for the sporting icon with AP displaying a sign of class and respect to Brady. Due to this piece being a one-of-one, additionally being factory-set which is always a bonus, there was an expectation that it would hit the million mark. However, it fell short selling for $720,000.
Secondly, there is the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph ‘50th Anniversary’ model reference 26240ST in stainless steel and the green dial (pictured left).
Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak is one of the most coveted collections to have ever been released, with some questioning what the brand would be without it. Launched in 1972, the first ever Royal Oak was introduced, reference 5402ST with this Royal Oak chronograph model reference 26420ST was released in 2022 celebrating the 50th-year-anniverary of the Royal Oak range.
This model had an estimated sale for $30,000 to $60,000 but sold for $114,000, adding to the list of watches that have exceeded expectations.
The final Audemars Piguet model to be sold at this auction was the Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph reference 26710OR in rose gold with the white dial (pictured right).
As mentioned, the Royal Oak was introduced in 1972, reference 5402ST being the first model to be released. 20 years later in 1992, Audemars Piguet launched an addition to the Royal Oak collection- the Royal Oak Offshore.
Since its release, the Offshore has gained mixed reception, even Gerald Genta criticised the design of the Offshore. However, this is a beautiful example of the Offshore collection, AP’s rose gold is always a stunning sight and combined with the white dial enhances this piece further.
Surprisingly, this Offshore reference 26170OR sold for $102,000, again exceeding the estimated value of the watch which was $30,000 to $60,000.
Richard Mille
Similar to Audemars Piguet, Brady auctioned three Richard Mille watches: references RM35-03 ‘Baby Nadal’ (pictured top left), RM11-03 CA (pictured bottom centre) and RM65-01 (pictured top right).
Firstly, the RM35-03 Richard Mille took the stand with an expectation of selling for $300,000 to $500,000. Despite the RM35-03 taking inspiration from the RM027 Tourbillon, it is a time watch only lacking the tourbillon movement, yet the RM35-03 consists of all the features and qualities that align with a Richard Mille watch: the lightweight carbon case, famous tonneau-shaped case and skeletonised dial. In this automatic movement of the RM35-03, there is Richard Mille’s patented butterfly rotor, with the addition of a function selector, enabling the model to fly into sports mode.
This Richard Mille model was created in collaboration with ambassador Rafael Nadal who, like Tom Brady, is an iconic sportsman which is why it possesses the name ‘Baby Nadal.’ This RM35-03 was sold for $384,000; a value falling within the estimation.
Debuting in 2007, the RM011 collection was produced in partnership with the legendary Brazilian Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa who is, currently, the longest lasting sports ambassador of the brand. The RM11-03 succeeded the RM011, and has many variations released to the world.
This RM11-03 CA in carbon TPT and grade 5 titanium sold for $336,000 which was within its estimated value range of $250,000 and $400,000.
Ending the Richard Mille side of Brady’s auction was the RM65-01, a Richard Mille model released in 2020, manufactured in titanium.
Like the previous two Richard Mille watches, the RM65-01 sold within its estimated value range of $250,000 to $400,000, $288,000 to be exact.
Potentially a slight concern for Richard Mille as the three models were the only watches in Brady’s collection to fall inside the estimated values, it could even be hinted that these Richard Mille’s would have gone for less if it wasn’t for Tom Brady’s name.
Tudor
Bringing this article to a close is the only Tudor piece in Brady’s collection that was auctioned- the Black Bay 58 ‘Friends of Hodinkee’ limited edition, reference 79030.
In 2019, Tudor collaborated with one of the largest watch blog and content creators, Hodinkee to create a special limited release for the brand’s closest friends and family. Limited to only 100 pieces, this Tudor and Hodinkee piece was estimated to sell for $5,000 to $10,000, but fetched up to $36,000!
Does this auction mean anything?
Ultimately, a watch being owned by an individual with legendary status and worldwide respect is always going to have an impact on the sale of a watch but there were definitely some surprises and shocks.
Brands like IWC and Rolex will be walking away feeling very proud that they managed to exceed expectations massively, whereas Richard Mille might be feeling slightly concerned that their watches fell short, arguing that without Brady's name tied to the models, they would have fallen shorter and below the estimation.
