Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Karim Benzema spotted wearing Rolex

Karim Benzema was photographed wearing a Rolex Submariner Date in the classic two-tone steel and yellow gold configuration, the watch sitting cleanly on his wrist above a relaxed white zip-up hoodie. The sighting is low-key in the best sense — no red carpet, no pageantry, just one of football's most decorated players and one of watchmaking's most enduring references going about their business.

The watch in question is the Rolex Submariner Date reference 116613LN, produced from 2010 until its succession by the 126613LN in 2020. Built around a 40mm Oyster case in 904L Oystersteel and 18ct yellow gold, it houses the Calibre 3135 — Rolex's workhorse self-winding movement featuring a Parachrom hairspring, Triplock crown seal, and a 48-hour power reserve rated to COSC chronometer standards. Water resistance is certified to 300 metres. The defining visual element is the black Cerachrom ceramic bezel, introduced on this reference, with gold-filled graduated dive timing markings and a unidirectional rotation. The black lacquer dial carries luminous rectangular hour markers and Mercedes hands in yellow gold.

The 116613LN holds a particular place in collector culture precisely because of its tension between tool watch utility and precious metal ostentation. Purists often argue for the all-steel 116610LN; enthusiasts who want overt luxury gravitate toward the all-gold 116618LN. The two-tone occupies a pragmatic middle ground that has never gone out of fashion, and its discontinuation in favour of the slightly larger 41mm 126613LN has only sharpened secondary market interest in the outgoing reference.

Benzema's horological taste runs toward understated classics rather than flashy complications — a sensibility consistent with a player whose game was similarly built on intelligence over spectacle. The Submariner Date, worn here without apparent ceremony, fits that profile precisely.

On the grey market, the 116613LN continues to trade at a meaningful premium over its original retail price. Demand for discontinued two-tone Submariners remains robust globally, and Benzema's profile in the Middle East and Europe only amplifies visibility for the reference among aspirational buyers.