The Diego Maradona Watch Story: Castro's Day-Date and the Hublot Tribute
Last updated: June 2026
Diego Maradona's two best-known watch stories are a gold Rolex Day-Date that Fidel Castro gave him and the Hublot King Power Diego Maradona he wore at the 2010 World Cup. At South Africa 2010 he wore two of the Hublots at once, one on each wrist, one for each of his daughters.
Maradona won the 1986 World Cup for Argentina and is the country's defining footballer. His watch story is short by collector standards but heavy on provenance. There is the Castro gift, which Maradona confirmed himself. There is the March 2010 Hublot signing, the first time a luxury watch house backed him as a serious ambassador. Then there is the tribute era after his death in November 2020. This piece keeps the focus on the watches across all three. For the wider picture of every watch heading into next summer's tournament, see our complete 2026 World Cup watches guide.
Table of Contents
- 1. Castro's Rolex Day-Date: the gift and the tattoo
- 2. Hublot signs Maradona (March 2010)
- 3. The King Power Diego Maradona: two on his wrists at South Africa 2010
- 4. Maradona's death and the Hublot tribute pieces
- 5. Why Maradona's watch story still resonates
- 6. Sources and methodology
- 7. Frequently asked questions
Castro's Rolex Day-Date: the gift and the tattoo
The most-told watch story about Maradona is the Rolex from Fidel Castro. Maradona and the Cuban leader had a long friendship, and Maradona confirmed himself that Castro gave him a gold Rolex Day-Date. The Day-Date is Rolex's presidential model, an 18-karat solid-gold dress watch with a day display spelled out in full across the top of the dial. It has been worn by heads of state since the 1950s, which makes it a fitting thing for one head of state to hand to a national hero.
How serious was the friendship? Maradona had Castro's portrait tattooed on his calf. That detail matters here. It is why the Castro Rolex carries real provenance weight rather than reading as a fan rumor. The relationship was documented and public, and the watch was part of it.
One honest limit: the exact reference number of the Castro Day-Date is not auction-grade documented. Specific attributions circulate in fan-blog form, but the watch has not passed through a major auction house with cataloged paperwork. We can say with confidence that Castro gave Maradona a gold Day-Date and that Maradona confirmed it. We cannot pin a precise reference or a year for the gift, so we will not.
The watch below is a representative example of the gold Day-Date President, not Maradona's exact piece. It shows the model line and the look: yellow gold, fluted bezel, President bracelet. Think of it as the family the Castro watch belonged to, not the watch itself.
Hublot signs Maradona (March 2010)
Hublot signed Maradona in March 2010, just before that summer's World Cup in South Africa. It was a meaningful signing for both sides. Maradona was a polarizing figure by then, decades past his playing peak and carrying a complicated public reputation. Most luxury houses chase clean, current stars. Hublot went the other way and backed one of football's most divisive icons as a serious ambassador rather than a one-off marketing curio.
The signing fit the brand's wider football push. Hublot was also FIFA's official timekeeper from 2010 to 2025, a partnership that ended in December 2025 and is covered in Hublot's 16-year FIFA partnership and how it ended. The Maradona deal was personal, not a FIFA-tier arrangement, which is why it outlived the brand's exit from the tournament. The specific terms of the Maradona contract were never publicly disclosed. For timeline context, the 2010 signing predated Hublot's 2018 signing of Kylian Mbappé, the brand's first active footballer in a lead ambassador role. Maradona was a legend, not an active player, when he came on board.
The King Power Diego Maradona: two on his wrists at South Africa 2010
The watch Hublot built around Maradona was the King Power Diego Maradona, a limited edition based on the brand's 48mm King Power case. The dial carried Maradona's signature "10," the number he wore for Argentina and Napoli. His signature also appeared on the caseback. Hublot released it in black and blue colorways.
The standout feature was a football timer. The chronograph (a stopwatch function built into the watch) used one hand for seconds and a second hand designed specifically to mark each 45-minute half of a match. That is a literal nod to how football is timed, two 45-minute halves, built into a wristwatch. The King Power Diego Maradona was a limited run; we are not going to quote a precise piece count, since the exact figure is not something we can verify here.
Then came the moment that defined the whole partnership. At South Africa 2010 Maradona was managing Argentina, his first World Cup as a head coach. He stood on the touchline wearing two King Power Maradonas at the same time, one on each wrist. He later explained that he wore one for each of his two daughters. The photographs from that tournament became one of the most-photographed football-watch crossovers of the century.
The two-watches-at-once image still comes up in conversations about football watches more than almost any other piece. The watch itself is a serious 48mm Hublot with a genuine chronograph; the story is what people remember first.
Maradona's death and the Hublot tribute pieces
Maradona died on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60. His death set off a global mourning that few athletes have ever drawn, and Argentina held days of national tribute.
Hublot has produced posthumous tribute pieces honoring Maradona since then. We are not going to enumerate specific tribute references or dates, because the brief and our own checking do not give us auction-grade detail on each one, and we would rather hedge than invent a reference number. What we can say plainly is that the tribute program exists and that Hublot has kept Maradona's name in its catalog as a heritage figure, alongside the Pelé tribute work covered in the Pelé watch story.
One point worth clearing up, because it confuses readers. Hublot ended its FIFA official-timekeeper partnership in December 2025. That exit was at the tournament tier only. Personal football ambassadorships and the estate and tribute programs (including both the Maradona and Pelé estates) are separate, personal arrangements that continue independently. The FIFA exit did not end the Maradona tribute pieces.
Why Maradona's watch story still resonates
Maradona is Argentina's defining footballer, the man who carried the 1986 World Cup. His "Hand of God" and "Goal of the Century" both came in the same 1986 quarter-final against England, four minutes apart. For Argentine fans, his shadow still falls over the national team, including Argentina's 2026 World Cup squad chasing a title in his memory.
His watches sit inside that legend rather than apart from it. The Castro Day-Date is a head-of-state gift tied to a real, tattooed friendship. The King Power Maradona is the watch he doubled up on his wrists at his only World Cup as a manager. Neither story is about specs or investment grade. Both are about a man whose life ran loud, and the watches he wore through it.
We do not sell Hublot, so there is no King Power Maradona pitch coming. For the gold Day-Date, the example above shows the model line, with the standing caveat that it is not Maradona's exact watch. Maradona's watch story is one of the better ones in football, and it deserves to be told straight, with its provenance gaps left visible rather than papered over.
Sources: Maradona's own statements confirming the gold Rolex Day-Date gift from Fidel Castro, and the well-documented Castro portrait tattoo on his calf. Hublot brand press for the March 2010 Maradona signing and the King Power Diego Maradona limited edition (48mm case, football-timer chronograph, signature "10" dial, signature caseback, black and blue colorways). Widely circulated 2010 South Africa World Cup photography for the two-watches moment. Hublot press for the posthumous tribute pieces produced after Maradona's death on November 25, 2020. The specific Castro Day-Date reference number circulates in fan-blog form but is not auction-grade documented, so no reference or gift year is stated here. The exact piece count of the King Power Diego Maradona is not given. The Rolex Day-Date shown is a representative example of the model line, not Maradona's exact watch. Any commentary on secondary market value reflects industry experience and is not financial advice; prices vary by condition, completeness of box and papers, and dealer. The 2026 FIFA World Cup runs June 11 to July 19, 2026 across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Fidel Castro really give Maradona a Rolex?
Yes. Maradona confirmed himself that he received a gold Rolex Day-Date from Fidel Castro, and the two had a documented friendship. Maradona famously had Castro's portrait tattooed on his calf. The specific reference number circulates in fan-blog form but is not auction-grade documented.
What Hublot did Maradona wear?
The King Power Diego Maradona limited edition. It used a 48mm case, a football-timer chronograph with one hand for seconds and one to mark each 45-minute half, Maradona's signature "10" on the dial, and his signature on the caseback. It came in black and blue colorways. He wore two at once at South Africa 2010.
Why did Maradona wear two watches at the 2010 World Cup?
One for each of his two daughters. Maradona was managing Argentina at South Africa 2010, his first World Cup as a head coach. He wore two King Power Maradonas at the same time, one on each wrist. The photographs became one of the most-shared football-watch images of the century.
When did Maradona die?
Maradona died on November 25, 2020, at the age of 60. His death drew global mourning and days of national tribute in Argentina. Hublot has produced posthumous tribute pieces honoring him in the years since.
Did Hublot's FIFA exit end the Maradona tribute pieces?
No. Hublot's December 2025 exit was at the FIFA official-timekeeper tier only. Personal football ambassadorships and heritage tribute programs, including the Maradona and Pelé estate work, are separate arrangements that continue independently of the FIFA partnership ending.
What was the Hublot Maradona deal worth?
The specific terms were never publicly disclosed. The March 2010 signing made Maradona one of the first major football figures backed by a luxury watch house as a serious ambassador. Kylian Mbappé followed in 2018 as Hublot's first active footballer in a lead ambassador role.