Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Mesut Özil spotted wearing Rolex

Mesut Özil, the Germany international and Arsenal playmaker whose vision on the pitch is matched by a carefully curated off-pitch image, was recently spotted wearing a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona in 18ct Everose gold with a black dial, reference 116505 — one of the most recognisable luxury sports watches in current production.

The Rolex Daytona 116505 is built around the manufacture Calibre 4130, a column-wheel, vertical-clutch chronograph movement that Rolex introduced in 2000 to replace the venerable Zenith-based Cal. 4030. Running at 28,800 vph with a 72-hour power reserve and 44 jewels, Cal. 4130 is widely regarded as one of the finest chronograph ebauches in the industry — reliable, serviceable, and entirely in-house. The 40mm Everose gold case, Rolex's proprietary 18ct rose gold alloy developed to resist fading, is paired here with a black dial featuring Cerachrom subdials in black ceramic, added during the ref. 116505's production run to modernise the aesthetic without abandoning the Daytona's classic three-register layout.

From a collector standpoint, the 116505 occupies a serious position in the Daytona family. While the stainless steel ref. 116500LN generates the loudest conversation around waiting lists and grey-market multiples, the Everose gold variant appeals to a buyer who wants precious metal gravitas alongside genuine sporting credentials. The black dial and ceramic subdial combination is considered the stronger of the two main configurations — the contrast is cleaner and the ceramic ages better than its white counterpart under UV exposure.

Özil's watch choices have long reflected a taste for established luxury rather than niche complications. The Daytona 116505 fits that profile precisely — it is immediately legible as a serious timepiece to any informed observer, without veering into the kind of ultra-complicated territory that demands explanation.

At UK retail the reference carries an RRP of approximately £26,000, translating to roughly $33,000 USD at the time of production. On the grey market, Everose Daytona examples in unworn condition with box and papers have traded consistently above retail, with black-dial configurations typically achieving a meaningful premium over comparable white-dial pieces — reflecting sustained collector demand for what remains one of Rolex's most coherent executions in precious metal.