It has been a difficult 18 months for the secondary market for luxury watches as prices have slumped for the hottest timepieces since March of last year.
There have been signs over the past quarter that the sector has stabilised.
The Bloomberg Subdial 50, a price tracker for the 50 most traded watches, predominately from Rolex, has been flatlining since the start of 2023 having declined from a peak of around $60,000 in the first quarter of last year to $36,000 today.
That stabilisation appears to have triggered renewed optimism in the prospects of the pre-owned sector, prompting the buy-in from Mr Ronaldo through his CR7 SA investment vehicle.
“As a long-term watch collector and regular user of Chrono24, it’s a pleasure for me to become a shareholder in the company now. Chrono24 unites millions of watch lovers from all around the world to share in their passion, together – that global unification is something I know well and am thrilled to be a part of,” Mr Ronaldo says.
The striker is well-known for his love of luxury watches, with a collection widely reported to be worth over $10 million.
That could be an underestimate after a season playing the in the Saudi Arabian football league, where there are fewer distractions for his spending power.
Forbes reports that Mr Ronaldo is the highest paid athlete in the world today, raking in $46 million over the past year from his time at Manchester United and Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr and an additional $90 million from off-field endorsements, which include a partnership with Jacob & Co.
The value of his investment in Chrono24 has not been disclosed, but he joins shareholders including Algae Ventures, the investment company of the world’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, General Atlantic, Insight Partners and Sprints Capital.
Together, these investments totalled €100 million in a funding round in August 2021.
“No one brings passion for luxury watches to the world stage quite like Cristiano,” suggests Chrono24 CEO, Tim Stracke.
“He has already solidified his place as one of the greatest athletes in history, and as an investor shows astute knowledge of world-class luxury and technology. That coupled with his authentic, proven passion for watch collecting makes him the perfect teammate as our company moves further into global expansion and our next chapter,” he adds.
Chrono24 funding rounds
2015
€37 million Series A raise from Insight Partners.
2019
Series B financing of €43 million from Sprints Capital, former Richemont director Gianni Serazzi, and YOOX-NET-A-PORTER founder Alberto Grignolo, among others.
2021
€100 million Series C raise from Algae Ventures, the investment company of the world’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, General Atlantic, Insight Partners and Sprints Capital.
2023
Undisclosed investment from Cristiano Ronaldo’s investment company CR7 SA.
