Footballer Paul Pogba spotted wearing a Audemars Piguet

Paul Pogba was photographed pitchside ahead of Juventus FC's UEFA Europa League match wearing one of the more conversation-worthy Royal Oaks in recent memory: the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Flying Tourbillon 'Turquoise' in titanium, reference 26730TI.

The 26730TI owes its existence to an uncomfortable episode in AP's recent history. A single client commissioned a private run of ten pieces in stainless steel, featuring the now-iconic turquoise dial, a flying tourbillon, and baguette-cut diamond hour markers — a specification that fell outside AP's standard catalogue. The collector, who turned out to be a flipper, sold nine of the ten pieces almost immediately on the secondary market. Rather than letting the design define itself through grey-market transactions, Audemars Piguet took the unusual step of legitimising the aesthetic by releasing an official titanium variant with near-identical specifications. The principal distinction: the addition of two baguette diamonds flanking the case, elevating the piece from special commission to finished manufacture product.

Under the dial, the 26730TI runs on Calibre 2910, AP's in-house flying tourbillon movement, which positions the tourbillon cage at 6 o'clock with no bridge obscuring the view from the dial side. The 41mm titanium case — lighter and more wearable than steel at this size — carries the integrated Royal Oak bracelet first drawn by Gérald Genta in 1972, here translated into a sports-luxury tourbillon that blurs every traditional category boundary. The turquoise dial, with its stark colour against the tapisserie guillochage, makes the piece immediately recognisable.

For collectors, the 26730TI occupies a strange and compelling niche. Its provenance — a manufacturer's corrective measure — gives it a backstory few references can match. It is simultaneously a limited production piece and a direct response to grey-market exploitation, which makes it a minor footnote in the ongoing conversation about allocation, clienteling, and the secondary market's influence on manufacture decisions.

Pogba's taste in haute horlogerie is well documented; the midfielder has consistently gravitated toward pieces that combine technical substance with visual impact. The Royal Oak Flying Tourbillon Turquoise 26730TI delivers precisely that, and its appearance on his wrist ahead of a high-profile European fixture puts a genuinely complex watch in front of a global audience.