Watch Paparazzi

Football manager Pep Guardiola spotted wearing Rolex

Pep Guardiola has never been shy about wearing serious watches on the touchline, and this sighting of the Rolex Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA reference 116660 on his wrist adds a compelling chapter to the manager's horological profile. Spotted during his time at Bayern Munich, Guardiola opted for one of Rolex's most technically ambitious sports watches — a choice that speaks to understated, tool-first sensibility rather than showy luxury.

Introduced in 2008, the Rolex Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA 116660 represented a genuine engineering leap for Geneva. Where the classic Sea-Dweller topped out at 1,220 metres of water resistance, the DEEPSEA pushed that figure to 3,900 metres — a depth exceeded by fewer than a handful of ocean trenches on Earth. To achieve this, Rolex engineered the Ringlock System: a nitrogen-alloyed steel ring inside the case middle that absorbs the crushing pressure load, paired with a 5mm-thick sapphire crystal and a helium escape valve as standard. The case itself measures 44mm in diameter and sits notably thick at 17.7mm, giving the 116660 a purposefully hefty wrist presence. Power comes from the in-house Calibre 3135, a 28,800vph movement with a 48-hour power reserve, certified as a Superlative Chronometer to ±2 seconds per day.

Among collectors, the 116660 occupies a well-respected position: it is the watch that legitimised Rolex's deep-diving credentials beyond the heritage appeal of the original Sea-Dweller. The black dial with its graduated Chromalight lume plots and the Cerachrom bezel insert — introduced progressively on the reference — give it a contemporary, legible aesthetic that wears equally well on a NATO strap or the integrated Oyster bracelet. It is not a flip-friendly speculation piece; it is bought and worn.

Guardiola's taste in watches has previously leaned toward robust, mechanical watches with genuine substance, and the DEEPSEA 116660 fits that pattern precisely. The 116660 was discontinued in 2017 when Rolex introduced the updated reference 126660 with Calibre 3235, which means the piece Guardiola wears now carries a quiet vintage-adjacent status on the secondary market.

On the grey market, clean examples of the Rolex Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA 116660 with box and papers trade at a modest premium to their original retail price, reflecting steady collector demand without speculative excess — a watch, in other words, that earns its reputation honestly.