Watch Paparazzi

Footballer Giorgio Chiellini spotted wearing Rolex

When Italy ended its 53-year wait for a European Championship title in the summer of 2021, Giorgio Chiellini was lifting the trophy at Wembley with this watch already on his wrist in spirit. The Rolex Daytona ref. 116520 'Capitano', commissioned through Parisian customiser MAD Paris just before the tournament kicked off, was purpose-built to mark the moment — and the Azzurri delivered.

The foundation is the stainless steel Daytona ref. 116520, a reference produced from 2000 to 2016 and powered by Rolex's in-house Calibre 4130. That movement represents a landmark in manufacture chronograph engineering: a column-wheel and vertical clutch mechanism delivering a clean start-stop action, 72-hour power reserve, and exceptional reliability. The 40mm case houses a tachymetric bezel and the classic Daytona sub-register layout that has defined the line since 1963. MAD Paris then applied a full black DLC (Diamond-Like Carbon) coating to the case and bracelet, lending the piece an aggressive matte finish that stands in sharp contrast to the dial.

That dial is where the 'Capitano' commission becomes genuinely compelling. Indices, hands, and sub-dial details are hand-painted in the colours of the Italian flag — verde, bianco, rosso — making each application unique at a granular level. The exhibition caseback, unusual for a Daytona whose standard ref. 116520 wears a solid screwback, reveals the Cal. 4130 and reportedly carries engraving specific to Chiellini and the national team context, though the full inscription was not publicly disclosed.

Chiellini spent two decades as the defensive spine of both Juventus and the Azzurri, earning a reputation for intelligent, uncompromising defending. His captaincy of the Euro 2020 squad — played in 2021 due to the pandemic — cemented his status as one of the defining figures of Italian football's modern era. The watch, tailor-made for him by MAD Paris, functions as a wearable record of that achievement.

On the secondary market, stock Rolex Daytona ref. 116520 examples in steel command significant premiums over their original retail, typically trading between $18,000 and $28,000 depending on dial colour and condition. A MAD Paris custom of this provenance — tied to a major international sporting event and a named athlete — exists in an entirely different collector category. No direct comparable sale exists, but bespoke MAD Paris pieces on high-demand Rolex references have achieved multiples of the base grey-market value at auction.