Breitling has just launched an extremely limited-edition watch series and a new squad, dedicated to the unions and federations that make up Six Nations Rugby: England, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, France, and Italy.
The Six Nations kicks off February 4, marking Breitling’s second season as the Official Timing Partner to Six Nations Rugby, the organisation known the world over for delivering rugby’s greatest championships, showcasing exhilarating men’s and women’s matches between its six competing unions: RFU (England), IRFU (Ireland), WRU (Wales), SRU (Scotland), FFR (France), and FIR (Italy).
The Swiss watchmaker also holds the title of exclusive luxury watch partner to Six Nations Rugby, which was celebrated in today’s unveiling of the Chronomat Six Nations.
This dynamic new series features a unique timepiece for each national team, limited to 150 pieces per watch.
“As Breitling’s all-purpose, no-limits sports watch, the Chronomat Six Nations is the ideal match for the fast and fearless world of rugby,” says Breitling CEO Georges Kern.
The stainless-steel watches have all the signature Chronomat characteristics: the raised rider tabs at the 15-minute marks, the easy-grip onion crown, the triple-register dial with integrated date at 6 o’clock and the classic rouleaux bracelet – all powered by Breitling’s exceptional Manufacture Caliber 01.
Each model sets itself apart by a dial that expresses the individual union’s colours, with its logo positioned in the subdial at 9 o’clock as well as on the sapphire crystal caseback.
MEET THE RUGBY SQUAD
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Providing the personality behind this collection is the new Breitling Rugby Squad, a crew of seven notable players from each of the Six Nations Rugby unions and federations, who will represent the Chronomat in their home countries.
Representing Wales, top scorer George North; from Ireland, three-time champion Conor Murray; from England, powerhouse prop Kyle Sinckler; from Italy, star fly-half Paolo Garbisi, who made his test debut in 2020; from France, Gaël Fickou, a 2022 Grand Slam winner; from Scotland, Hamish Watson, the 2021 Player of the Championship; and also from Scotland, Stuart Hogg, twice named the Championship’s top performer.
Breitling’s role as Official Timing Partner to Six Nations Rugby includes the Six Nations Championship, the TikTok Women’s Six Nations, the Autumn Nations Series, and the Rugby World Cup 2023 warm-up matches.
The high-performance action of Six Nations Rugby competitions, combined with its values of sportsmanship and inclusivity, are what drew Breitling to the partnership. The two also share a common heritage: the watch brand was founded in 1884, while the Championship can trace its roots back a year earlier, to 1883.
The Chronomat was originally designed as the official watch of the Frecce Tricolori, the famed Italian aerobatics squadron. Not only popular amongst aviators, the Chronomat’s tachymeter attracted the interest of Formula 1 teams in the 1980s and 1990s.
Its reversible rider tabs, which allow for “count up” or “count down” functions, also made it ideal for diving and yachting regattas. The Chronomat has since become Breitling’s most multifaceted sports watch, associated with athletes who push the limits of human endurance in the air, on land, and at sea.
The Chronomat Six Nations contains the Breitling Manufacture Caliber 01, a COSC-certified chronometer that delivers an impressive power reserve of about 70 hours and carries a five-year warranty. The 42-mm case and rouleaux bracelet are stainless steel.
The hands are coated with luminescent Super-LumiNova®, and like all Chronomat models, it is water-resistant to 200 meters. Each caseback is specially engraved with the name of the union, “Six Nations”, and the “One of 150” limitation.
The Chronomat Six Nations is available in the UK and select EU countries. The Six Nations Championship kicks off February 4, when Wales hosts Ireland. The series runs until March 19, followed by the TikTok Women’s Six Nations, beginning March 25.