American football player Tom Brady spotted wearing a IWC

Tom Brady chose a fitting send-off for his playing career: the night before announcing his retirement from professional football, the seven-time Super Bowl champion appeared at the Hollywood premiere of '80 for Brady' wearing one of the rarest wristwatches IWC has ever produced. The IWC Portugieser Tourbillon Hand Wound Squelette Ref. IW546201, limited to just 25 examples in 2011, is precisely the kind of piece that signals a collector who moves well beyond brand ambassadorship into genuine connoisseurship.

The IW546201 houses IWC's in-house Calibre 98950, a hand-wound skeletonized movement featuring a one-minute flying tourbillon at six o'clock. The bridges and mainplate have been extensively skeletonized and hand-finished, exposing the full gear train and the tourbillon cage in a manner that rewards close study. Power reserve sits at a generous 68 hours, and the movement beats at 21,600 vph. The platinum case measures 44.2mm — commanding on the wrist but consistent with the Portugieser family's historically oversized DNA, which traces back to the original 1939 commission by Portuguese merchants who wanted a pocket-watch-calibre movement in a wristwatch case.

With only 25 examples produced, the IW546201 occupies a category well above IWC's standard limited-edition Portugieser tourbillons. The skeletonized dial removes virtually every visual barrier between the wearer and the movement, making it arguably the most technically expressive reference in the modern Portugieser catalogue. Collectors regard 2011-era IWC tourbillon skeletons favorably for their finishing quality and the relative maturity of the 98950 calibre at that point in its development.

Brady's relationship with IWC is well documented — he has served as a brand ambassador and has appeared in IWC campaigns over multiple years. His personal collection spans several references across the Portugieser and Pilot lines, but the IW546201 represents the apex of that relationship: a piece given or acquired through the kind of access reserved for the marque's closest partners. Wearing it on the eve of retirement reads less like product placement and more like a deliberate personal statement.

On the secondary market, platinum tourbillon skeletons from IWC with production runs this small command serious premiums. The IW546201 rarely surfaces at auction, which itself speaks to how tightly held these 25 examples remain among their owners.