Swiss watchmakers may be feeling like they are 39 points down, deep into the fourth quarter, but Breitling is betting that passion for American football will help it ride out the current uncertainty over tariffs.
Breitling has become the official timepiece partner of the NFL in a multi-year global deal that is a significant upgrade on a licensing deal agreement allowed it to launch 32 different versions of its Chromonat sports watch earlier this year with the branding and colours of the 32 NFL teams.
Thierry Prissert, US president for Breitling, says the new global partnership opens far more opportunities than the licensing agreement and gives them considerably more freedom to develop the collaboration.
“We are now one of just 30 major sponsors of the NFL, and the first watchmaker. This gives us access to the entire ecosystem of what is the number one sport in the United States,” he adds.
Breitling’s CEO, Georges Kern, is equally excited. “Partnering with the NFL is a defining moment for Breitling,” he says, adding: “The NFL brings people together: families, friends, entire communities. It’s about the moments you share and the traditions you build over time. That’s what we wanted to reflect in these watches. It’s something you wear with pride and one day pass on, along with your love for the game.”
The partnership stops short of official timekeeper status, which for most sports — as we see with Omega at the Olympics — includes branding and technology for in-stadium and on-screen timing.
Kicking-off the partnership are new NFL Team Edition collections of Breitling’s Chronomat Automatic GMT and its Endurance Pro.
Each of the league’s 32 teams will have their own designs but, unlike with the previous licensing deal, the watches can carry the NFL’s logo and do not have to feature the logos of each team.
This freedom, Mr Prissert suggests, means watches might be sold to anybody, not just to a fan of a certain team, which may have been the case with the earlier NFL Team Editions.
For example, the NFL Team Editions Chronomat Green Bay Packer edition (above) had the team’s G logo in the small seconds sub dial.
This week’s new Chronomat GMT B01 42 NFL Green Bay Packers Edition (below) presents as a classically sporty Breitling timepiece with a highly desirable moss green dial and a flash of additional interest from the orange GMT hand.
The only reference to the Packers is on the watch’s closed steel case back.
This could help with one of the challenges faced by the earlier NFT Edition Chronomats, which had demand outstripping supply for some of the teams’ watches while others struggled to sell out.
Breitling Chromomat Automatic GMT NFL Team Editions
The Chronomat GMTs come in 40mm steel cases housing Breitling COSC-certified Caliber 32 automatic movements with 42-hour power reserve.
They are worn on Breitling’s integrated rouleaux (rolled) steel bracelet and on sale today at $6,600+tax.
Under the terms of the licensing agreement, the previous NFL Chronomat chronographs were only on sale in the United States.
Under the new global official timepiece partnership with the NFL, the watches can be sold worldwide and there will also be marketing activations at NFL matches played outside the United States, which include three games in London in October this year.
Breitling will activate across key NFL events including Super Bowl LX, NFL Honors, and the draft.
Breitling will present custom timepieces for select winners at the 2026 NFL Honors, an opportunity to get watches on the wrists of the sports biggest stars.
Breitling Endurance Pro NFL Team Editions
In addition to the Chronomat GMTs, Breitling has also introduced 32 NFL editions of its Endurance Pro, forged in titanium and worn on black rubber straps.
Powered by Breitling’s SuperQuartz caliber 82, the collection comes in an imposing 44mm x 12.5mm case.
Club logos are back on the dials, this time in the small seconds sub dial at 6 o’clock on the dial and club colours are used for an internal pulsometer scale at the perimeter of the dial.
The famous NHL shield is engraved into every steel case back, the first time the logo has been allowed on a Breitling watch.
Pre-orders are being taken from today for the watches, which are priced at $4,400+tax.
