Rolex Daytona 116519 'FIFA World Cup 2010 – Netherlands Edition'

The last known special order Rolex. There was a time when Rolex occasionally allowed sovereign and corporate clients to commission bespoke executions. That time has long passed. Well, there’s an exception to every rule. This watch gives us mixed feelings. On the one hand, it reminds us of not winning the 2010 World Cup finals.

We first found out of its existence in 2014, when we had the pleasure to welcome Giovanni van Bronckhorst in the store. The following are his words:

The idea of a special piece, to commemorate our group and achievements, already came to life during the quarter finals of the world cup in 2010. As a watch lover I proposed the idea to my friends at Gassan: a Dutch AD. Our hopes weren’t very high since I understood it was very unlikely for Rolex to grant such special editions, but after Gassan forwarded the idea to Rolex we were surprised to hear they were open to it. We came to the conclusion it had to feature the national color, orange, and it has to remain somewhat subtle; also on the request of Rolex. We’ve opted for the whitegold Daytona and more particularly the “racing dial”, but orange details instead of red. The Daytona signature however, remained red as Rolex wasn’t willing to change this. Both the players and the staff could choose from either a 116509 or 116519, the latter featuring another unique aspect: orange stitching. By coincidence it was exactly split into 15 pieces delivered for each ref in januari 2011, exactly half a year after we lost the final to Spain. The caseback, meanwhile, is engraved with the 2010 World Cup logo as well as the player’s name and squad number.

This watch is truly one of the most spectacular and rare automatic Daytonas ever made. We’ve spent many years trying to acquire one and five pieces passed through our hands before we were finally able to purchase this beauty. Another specimen, with a white gold bracelet, was auctioned by Sotheby’s in May 2022 and achieved a breathtaking hammer price of 441,000 Swiss Francs, confirming once more how special this watch is. Now is your chance to get your hands on one as well!