Footballer James Rodriguez spotted wearing a Richard Mille

James Rodriguez, the Colombian playmaker who built his reputation with a stunning 2014 World Cup golden boot campaign and stints at Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Atletico Madrid, was photographed wearing a Richard Mille RM 67-01 Automatic Extra Flat — not in its standard configuration, but in one of its most extravagant: a full diamond-pavé 18K rose gold case that leaves virtually no surface untouched by stones.

The RM 67-01 was introduced as Richard Mille's answer to a specific engineering challenge: producing a fully automatic, skeletonised movement inside the brand's signature ergonomic tonneau case while keeping total thickness below 8mm. The result is the Calibre CRMA7, an in-house automatic movement with micro-rotor winding, delivering hours, minutes, and date, all visible through the open-worked architecture. Achieving this in a case that also displays the structural bridges and baseplate typical of Richard Mille's aesthetic required serious movement architecture discipline — the kind usually reserved for ultra-thin dress watches from Geneva's traditional manufactures.

What separates Rodriguez's piece from the standard RM 67-01 is the full diamond coverage across the case — bezel, lug structure, and case flanks — executed in 18K rose gold. This configuration sits at the apex of the RM 67-01 family, which also includes versions in titanium, Carbon TPT, and quartz TPT. The combination of warm rose gold and white diamond pavé is deliberately maximalist, aimed at a clientele for whom the movement architecture alone is not a sufficient display of intent.

Rodriguez has long been associated with high-horology, and Richard Mille in particular, a brand that has systematically cultivated relationships with elite athletes across football, tennis, and motorsport. His choice of the fully jewelled RM 67-01 aligns with a broader pattern among South American footballers who favour pieces that balance technical credibility with visible opulence.

In the grey market, fully diamond-set Richard Mille references in precious metal trade at significant premiums over already elevated list prices. The RM 67-01 in this diamond-pavé rose gold configuration is quoted at approximately $250,000, a figure that reflects both the material cost and the scarcity of Richard Mille's most elaborately finished references. Demand among collectors for ultra-flat automatic RM references remains strong, particularly in configurations this difficult to source.