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Cristiano Ronaldo Adds the One-Off Caviar Flying Tourbillon to His Luxury Watch Collection

What do you get the man who has everything – or, if he doesn’t have it yet, he could very well just go out and buy it because he’s very rich? In Cristiano Ronaldo’s case, you get him more one-offs.
Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co. 9 photos
Photo: Jacob & Co.
Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co.
Cristiano Ronaldo is not just the world’s most famous and highest-paid athlete of modern times, but a very discerning collector of luxury pieces as well. They range from exclusive cars to custom-made or very rare timepieces, and he’s just added another item to the latter.

Earlier this month, while on his way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he was about to undergo his second battery of medical tests before his big introduction to the Al Nassr football team, Ronaldo posted a short video for his fans. Sitting in a fancy private jet lent to him for this occasion, he winked and pointed at the camera, telling his fans that he’d be seeing them soon. Word on the street is that Ronaldo will be getting a record-breaking $200 million salary for the transfer, so he needs the public support.

Immediately visible on his right hand was what looked like a giant, engagement-type diamond ring, of the kind he’s been wearing a lot. Not immediately noticeable on the wrist of his left hand was his brand new watch, which watchmaker Jacob & Co. has just recently introduced to great fanfare. It’s a one-off piece designed exclusively for him, which blurs the boundary between high-end watchmaking and fine jewelry, and that comes with a price to match. As expected.

Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one\-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co\.
Photo: Jacob & Co.
That piece is the Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co., and it comes to join an impressive collection of timepieces that features other one-offs and is estimated to be to the tune of many millions of dollars. If this hadn’t been made specifically for Ronaldo and specifically to mark his move to Saudi Arabia, it would have retailed for $770,000. As a one-off, though, and with such A-list celebrity provenance, it’s invaluable. Assuming it ever emerges on the second-hand market.

“Caviar Flying Tourbillon collection embodies Jacob & Co.’s drive to stop at nothing in its quest to create masterpieces of incomparable beauty,” the company says of its most recent accomplishment. “Jacob & Co. is one of the few companies in the luxury industry that has the legitimacy and true expertise to combine high jewelry and high watchmaking.”

That sounds like a not-so-humble self-brag, but it’s accurate. Jacob & Co. watches are usually a striking blend of jewelry making and watchmaking, to the point where classifying them becomes impossible, and the Caviar is a brilliant example in this sense. The “brilliant” pun is intended, since it’s quite a blinged-out piece, if you’ll allow the very crass phrasing.

That’s because the dial, the case and the lugs are adorned with 388 baguette-cut tsavorites totaling 38.57 carats. Look closer, and you’ll notice a rose-cut 1.20-carat emerald on the crown, and 338 brilliant-cut white diamonds on the caseback. Ronaldo has always favored diamond-heavy jewelry pieces, whether they’re watches or bracelets, and the diamond-set caseback proves that he’s still obsessed with them.

Tsavorite is the world’s rarest and most expensive garnet, and it’s 200 times rarer than emeralds. Jacob & Co. chose to work with tsavorites because they offer more brilliance, and because the green of the watch is a tribute to the Saudi Arabian flag.

Cristiano Ronaldo's new timepiece is the one\-off Caviar Flying Tourbillon from Jacob & Co\.
Photo: Jacob & Co.
The challenge with this piece was not just sourcing such a high number of gems, but finding them in matching shades, cutting them, and then setting them invisibly to create the impression of a single unit with countless facets that catch and reflect the light. According to the company, the inspiration for the piece is included in the name: “the rich, lustrous translucence of the finest caviar.”

As with the majority of Jacob & Co. timepieces, legibility comes in second to the artistry of creating a piece of jewelry. But this is a functional watch, featuring the exclusive automatic caliber JCAA43 with 216 components. The highlight is the one-minute flying tourbillon, a complication that gets its name from the fact that it’s supported on just one side, located at the six o’clock hand. The tourbillon has a 42-hour power reserve, titanium balance, and anti-shock system, and serves to offset the effect of gravity on a watch movement.

The dial is 18K white gold, while the caseback is sapphire crystal for maximum visibility of the mechanism inside, and extra durability. The 47 mm watch comes with matching green alligator leather strap, and the asterisk that it’s not designed for the faint of heart, the budgeting type, or those who wish to not stand out. As it happens, Cristiano Ronaldo is not a single one of these things, so the Caviar Flying Tourbillon must feel like a perfect match on his wrist – for as long as he keeps it.



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About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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