Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Mesut Özil spotted wearing Patek Philippe

At the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix, one of the calendar's great convergence points for sport, luxury and spectacle, Mesut Özil added another talking point — a Patek Philippe Nautilus reference 5711/1A-014 on his wrist, its distinctive sunburst olive green dial catching the Mediterranean light with effortless authority.

The 5711/1A-014 is a watch that needs almost no introduction in collector circles, yet its specifications remain worth revisiting. The case measures 40mm in polished and satin-finished stainless steel, built around Gerald Genta's original 1976 porthole-inspired design. Inside sits Patek Philippe's Calibre 26-330 S C, a self-winding movement with a 45-hour power reserve, beating at 28,800 vph, offering hours, minutes, seconds and a date display. The signed crown and integrated bracelet remain hallmarks of the reference's enduring design language.

What makes the 5711/1A-014 historically significant is the circumstances of its release. Patek Philippe announced in January 2021 that the stainless steel 5711 would be discontinued — a commercial and cultural bombshell. The olive green dial variant was then revealed as a limited swan-song edition, produced in extremely restricted quantities and allocated only to top-tier Patek Philippe clients. Its debut retail price sat at approximately $37,800 USD. The grey market reacted immediately and violently, with examples trading well above $500,000 within months of release.

Özil's taste in timepieces has long reflected a serious collector's sensibility rather than mere celebrity spending. The German midfielder — a World Cup winner in 2014, and one of the most technically gifted playmakers of his generation — has been photographed with a range of high-horology pieces over the years. Spotting him with one of the most allocation-restricted Pateks in recent memory at Monaco, the spiritual home of excess done with elegance, feels entirely appropriate.

On the current market, authenticated examples of the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711/1A-014 trade in the $650,000–$750,000 range depending on condition and provenance, representing a return of roughly 18–20x over retail. Few modern watches can claim a comparable trajectory.