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A few years back, it would have seemed strange that a Swiss luxury brand, which was also a flagship of fine watchmaking, would stoop so low to associate itself with football stadiums and hence win over the abundant, colorful rabble.

Before the era of watch designers, watchmakers mainly drew their inspiration from two artistic movements: Art Nouveau and Art Deco, which started in 1880 and 1920 respectively. How did watchmakers adapt to these influences?

Members of the Blancpain team gave a memorable presentation of a complex masterpiece at their stand in BaselWorld, the highlight of this year’s watches.

The piece historians today consider the first chronograph was actually called the compteur de tierces, or thirds counter, from an old term for one-sixtieth of a second. The day following its discovery, Wikipedia already corrected its copy on the chronograph.

Watches have traditionally been the expression of watchmakers’ quest for aesthetics. Here is a historical overview from an architectural point of view, before the designer era.

Associating a timepiece with a famous face is a trend some brands gave up to let their products do the job. Yet, current events in football have reopened the debate.