He emerges from the dark waters, a sword in one hand, a shield in the other. With his hair down and his chest draped in a fur breastplate, he looks like a king returned from battle. All that’s missing is the longship behind him in the mist. Is it Thor, the god of Thunder, Marvel’s hero? No, it’s Erling Haaland. In 2023, the Manchester City footballer posed for photographer David Yarrow for a portrait in the fjords of his homeland. A tribute to his Scandinavian roots, but also a nod to a charitable cause. The image captures the essence of the Norwegian giant, who steps onto the pitch like his ancestors landed on the English shores a thousand years ago. Blond, blue-eyed, 1.94m tall and weighing 88 kilos, Erling Haaland is a Viking.
An extraordinary player
In the Haaland family, performance is a family affair. His father, Alf-Inge, made his mark on the English fields in the 90s with Norway; his mother, Gry Marita Braut, amassed national titles in heptathlon. His grandfather? A long-distance runner. The Manchester City striker embraces this legacy with flair: 42 goals for the national team, 123 with City, 86 under Dortmund’s colors, 29 at Salzburg, 20 at Molde. At 25, which he will celebrate on July 21, the center-forward boasts already 300 goals. A fast-paced trajectory. It’s therefore logical that Breitling approached him in 2022 to join its “All-Star Squad,” alongside basketball player Giannis Antetokounmpo, snowboarder Chloe Kim, and American football quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Because Haaland not only breaks records, he embodies a form of meticulous discipline. Time, he senses it, controls it, anticipates it.
Chronomat, a watch with cosmic detail
“Erling Haaland is exactly what we look for in a Squad member”, said in 2024 Georges Kern, CEO of Breitling. “He is a high-performing athlete with an exceptional character; he is authentic and down-to-earth.” The football player is a metronome. He knows that time is elastic on a field, it can slow down or speed up according to the emotions felt. On his wrist, he wears a Chronomat, instantly recognizable by its rotating bezel with four rider tabs and its Rouleaux bracelet. But not just any Chronomat, an Erling Haaland Signature designed in collaboration with Breitling in two limited editions. The first, the Chronomat Automatic GMT 40, in steel and platinum, produced in 500 copies, features a red gold GMT hand and the player’s initials. The second, more exclusive, the Chronomat B01 42, in 18-carat red gold, is equipped with a Breitling 01 manufacture movement visible through the sapphire back, and only 250 copies will be made. In both cases, the creations feature a fascinating material on the dial: the Muonionalusta meteorite, formed 4.5 billion years ago at the heart of a dead star.
The unattainable ONE OF 5
There exists an even rarer version: the ONE OF 5, reserved for Haaland and his entourage. Gold case, meteorite dial, engraving of his name on the edge, and on the back, his signature image: arms open, face closed, celebrating a goal. A piece no one can acquire, designed for a player who can be matched by none. With it, Erling Haaland can time everything: his training, his goals, his major deadlines, the Champions League, international tournaments, the 2026 World Cup. And, who knows, perhaps also the countdown that separates him from a Ballon d’Or, after he finished second to Messi in 2023.
