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The World Cup has had some huge games and equally big style flexes – both off the pitch, as per Erling Haaland’s insane Birkin collection, and on it. Djed Spence has scored extremely emphatically in that category with the custom carbon fibre mask that's protecting his broken jaw, complete with gold detailing spelling out his initials and shirt number. Every time he's played, he's really looked the part, no more so than his late cameo against Norway where he was everywhere, and almost won England a stick-on penalty (or he dived, if you’re Norwegian).
Anyway, let’s not go down that rabbit hole, but instead take a look at Spence’s other big accessory: no, not his Chrome Hearts Vagilante glasses, though they’re nice too, but his watch. Off-duty in Miami and Mexico City, and in a pre-quarter-final pitch inspection, he’s been wearing a Rolex GMT-Master II. If you know anything about GMT-Masters, you’ll know about the odd nicknames – Pepsi, Batman, Hulk, Coke, etc – they’re given based on the colour combination of their bezels, which help you read a second (or third) time zone by adjusting it in relation to the watch’s 24-hour hand. Spence’s watch is a “Root Beer”, as per the black and brown colouring, which indicate the day and night sections of that 24-hour indicator.
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An all-American Rolex for an all-American World Cup campaign – very apt, especially since England is now bopping around Miami and Atlanta, and possibly New York for the final, now they’re in the tournament’s final stages. Root Beers tend to come in two-tone and fully rose gold versions, given how nicely that gold tone plays with the deep brown half of the bezel. Spence isn’t messing around: he’s got the all-gold edition, because – why not? Aged just 25, he’s an essential plank of a World Cup semi-final team.
To get into the football-watch-ology of it all – at least to a manageable extent – this is a little different from the complication-packed Patek Philippes and sporty Richard Milles that footballers and their managers usually go for now. It’s a bit more exuberant, and blingy in a fun rather than a showboating way. A good analogue to how England have been playing at their best in recent weeks. And given the team has travelled further than any other for all their games leading up to the semis – more than 14,000 miles, compared to 12,000 for Spain, 8,000 for Argentina and fewer than 2,000 for France – you can bet Djed Spence has been getting a bit of use out of that GMT function too.