2-0 For the Ballon D'Or

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2-0 For the Ballon D'Or  - Purnell
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The brand is releasing a tourbillon for the 2022 Ballon d’Or trophy for the best male and female football players. Only 2 will be made, meaning 0 chance of seeing one in the metal

The brand is releasing a tourbillon for the 2022 Ballon d’Or trophy for the best male and female football players. Only 2 will be made, meaning 0 chance of seeing one in the metal.

Firstly, thanks to unique brand positioning. By making nothing but tourbillons, Purnell has established itself as the ultra-specialist in this very particular complication. It’s a tiny market but Purnell is the only brand in it.

Terraces or VIP box?

Purnell isn’t the only brand to associate its name with the beautiful game. However, and secondly, it has done so from a different angle. In a sport torn between multimillionaire players and sponsors on the one hand and, on the other, a legion of die-hard fans with just about enough disposable income to buy a rubber strap, Purnell made a choice informed by the very nature of its production: only players and sponsors have any hope of owning a Purnell tourbillon.

2-0 For the Ballon D'Or

No players, no clubs; an award

Lastly, because Purnell has been smart enough to distance itself from individual players and clubs whose horological loyalties often vary from one season to the next. Think of Messi, who started out at Audemars Piguet, then transferred to Jacob & Co, and now wears whatever takes his fancy – most recently a Patek Philippe Nautilus. Or David Beckham, who left Breitling for Tudor. To name but two. By associating with an award rather than a player, Purnell casts its net wider while benefiting from the legitimacy and longevity of a trophy that was first presented in 1956. 

Simply complex

The watch Purnell has created for the Ballon d’Or features a golden football - which is the name of the award, invented by a French football magazine, in English. Hardly a great feat of imagination, one might say, except that contained inside Purnell’s football is an actual tourbillon. This is where the brand’s creative talent comes to the fore, with an extraordinarily complex watch that holds the attention with its apparent simplicity. Imagine a watch in two halves. In the top part there is the movement powering central hours and minutes in addition to a power reserve indication at 9 o’clock. Producing such a compact calibre is far from simple, particularly when it incorporates two barrels of sufficiently generous dimensions to drive the tourbillon and provide 50 hours of autonomy.

The tourbillon takes up the lower section. Or so we must tell ourselves, as it is hidden from view inside the golden football. The watch can thus be appreciated on two levels. Fans of fine watchmaking will realise the incredible complexity of the structure that encloses a tourbillon inside a constantly rotating football; football fans will love the sight of a ball spinning in mid-air, exposing its golden facets to the light in a luxurious spectacle that delights and enthrals. Something for everyone, then. Purnell is guaranteed to score whatever the audience and whatever their level of understanding.

Horological Yeti

What else does this Purnell Ballon d’Or need to become the ultimate conversation piece? The answer is: to be unique. Hence only one will be presented to the winner of the Ballon d’Or for best male player and one to the winner of the Ballon d’Or for best female player. The chances of ever seeing the Purnell Ballon d’Or in the metal are therefore close to zero. The chances of owning one, beyond zero, which makes it the ultimate collector’s piece. A horological Yeti. Something everyone talks about but no-one has ever seen...

 

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