With more than one billion views over the course of each championship, the FIFA World Cup is the world’s most watched sporting event. Hublot served as its official timekeeper for the fourth consecutive time earlier this year at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, and unveiled a special watch ahead of the event to commemorate this edition of the tournament. This timepiece, the Big Bang e FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, is based on the brand’s third-generation connected watch, and was worn by all 129 official referees of the event. Just 1,000 pieces of this watch will be produced.

During the FIFA World Cup 2022, spectators who were wearing the Big Bang e FIFA had access to specific functions that were specially tailored for the tournament. For a start, the watch had a countdown function that tracked the time to the championship’s opening match, as well as the individual matches after. At 15 minutes before each of the 64 scheduled games’ commencement, push notifications would be sent to each Big Bang e FIFA with information on the teams’ line-ups and player profiles.

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The watch would then automatically enter “match mode” and activate its “timeline” function at kick-off. This did not just track the progress of a match, but also logged events such as when and by whom every goal was scored, and every penalty that was awarded and/or converted. The timepiece’s wearer could thus have a real time, play-by-play recount of a match as it progressed, right into overtime and penalty shootouts. This information could also be recalled after a match, to essentially serve as a record of the entire championship.

To support all these functions, as well as the staples expected of a modern smartwatch, the Big Bang e FIFA is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100+ processor running the latest version of Google’s Wear OS. A full suite of connectivity standards and sensors are included, from a heart rate monitor to GPS receiver. Hublot has stated that this watch will come with an all-day battery life, with a fully drained battery requiring just two hours to fully charge.

The lineage of Hublot’s iconic Big Bang watch is, of course, clearly visible here. Design aside, what also sets this watch apart is its finely crafted case, which is constructed from ceramic and titanium. The bold 44-millimetre case diameter also alludes to the brand’s penchant for strong, confident designs — one backed up with the equally daring watchmaking philosophy the brand dubs “the art of fusion”.

The Big Bang e FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 offers a great degree of personalisation, with dozens of dial options available via its accompanying smartphone app. There is an “official” colourway: a burgundy dial with a matching black and burgundy lined rubber strap inspired by the flag colours of Qatar, this edition’s host country. Fans will also be able to choose dial and strap designs in the colours of each of the 32 participating countries. After all, what better way to support one’s chosen team than to wear its colours on the wrist?

Movement: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100+; up 24-hours battery life
Case: 44mm ceramic and titanium; water-resistant to 30m
Strap: Rubber
Price: S$8,200

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