Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Adel Taarabt spotted wearing Rolex

Adel Taarabt, the Moroccan international and Benfica FC attacking midfielder celebrated for his improvisational brilliance, was recently photographed wearing a Rolex Sky-Dweller in the so-called 'Chocolate Arab Leather' configuration — reference 326135 on a matching brown leather strap. The sighting adds Taarabt to a growing list of footballers who gravitate toward the Sky-Dweller as a statement beyond the standard sports Rolex playbook.

The Rolex Sky-Dweller ref. 326135 sits in the brand's two-tone 'Rolesor' tier, combining a polished and brushed Oystersteel case with Everose gold applied to the bezel, crown, and select lugs. The 42mm Oyster case — larger than Rolex's classical dress pieces — frames a rich chocolate sunray dial with Arabic numeral hour markers and the brand's distinctive off-centre annual calendar ring, known as the Saros system. Water resistance is rated to 100 metres. The brown alligator leather strap on this configuration lends the watch a cohesive, warm aesthetic that distinguishes it clearly from steel-bracelet or jubilee alternatives.

Under the dial lives the real story: Calibre 9001, a proprietary Rolex movement that represents the most complex mechanism the brand has ever produced for series production. It features a bidirectional self-winding rotor, a 72-hour power reserve, a patented annual calendar (requiring a single manual correction per year, in March), and a dual time zone display using a 24-hour indicator on the chapter ring. Rolex reportedly spent close to a decade developing the architecture before the Sky-Dweller's 2012 debut at Baselworld.

Collector appetite for the Sky-Dweller has matured significantly since its launch, when many purists dismissed it as oversized and overtly luxurious. Today the reference 326135 with chocolate dial is regarded as one of the more restrained and wearable entries in the line, carrying genuine secondary-market demand. The 'Arab numerals' dial variant in particular attracts buyers who want legibility alongside complication depth.

For Taarabt, whose career has spanned AC Milan, Queens Park Rangers, and now Benfica, the Sky-Dweller ref. 326135 is a fitting choice — technically substantial, quietly showy, and instantly recognisable to those who know what they are looking at. Retail pricing in the UK sits around £26,350, with grey-market values running at a modest premium given sustained demand.