By Rifan Muazin 
Cartier now appears to be the official watch of the Kelce-Swift household. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce arrived at Arrowhead Stadium for a pregame matchup against the Rams wearing a gold Cartier Santos, a move that signals a deepening aesthetic alignment between the NFL superstar and his partner, global pop icon Taylor Swift. The Parisian jeweler, long a symbol of refined luxury, is quickly becoming a shared passion between Kelce and Swift, marking a shift in how the world’s most visible couple approaches high-fashion accessorizing. This isn’t merely a coincidence of taste; it is a calculated embrace of a brand that has seen its cultural and financial stock soar in recent years.
Taylor Swift is clearly a Cartier adherent and has worn a lovely gold Santos Demoiselle over the past year. Her choice of the elegant riff on the Santos had an immediate effect on the marketplace for this model, flooding dealers’ Instagram feeds with DMs and inquiries from collectors and fans alike. While Cartier has been hot for some years now—it’s the second-largest Swiss watchmaker by revenue after Rolex—the “Swift Effect” is very real. Stock of gold references like hers immediately disappeared from shelves both physical and digital as soon as she wore one. In the world of luxury retail, this phenomenon is often referred to as "social proofing" on a massive scale. When an individual with Swift’s reach adopts a specific timepiece, it transcends the "watch world" and enters the broader cultural consciousness, driving demand that traditional marketing campaigns could never achieve.
Swift’s influence evidently works in close range, too, as her husband couldn’t resist picking up a gold Cartier himself. The Santos de Cartier shares a lineage with Swift’s—an homage to the Brazilian-French aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont, who in 1904 asked Louis Cartier to create a watch that would allow him to tell time while keeping both hands on the controls of his aircraft. This historical DNA—a unique case design with a “riveted” bezel and an industrial yet elegant silhouette—is present in both watches, but Kelce’s choice is much larger and more aggressive. The effect of Kelce’s is amped up by its skeletonized dial, meaning that pieces of the movement have been removed so that the componentry is visible via the dial, making for a cool visual effect that reveals its manually wound structure. The skeletonization on the Cartier cal. 9612 MC is particularly cool, as the movement’s bridges actually form the classic Cartier Roman-numeral dial indices. This technical mastery ensures that the watch is not just a piece of jewelry, but a feat of mechanical engineering.
The watch case itself is pure luxury. Made of 18K yellow gold, it measures 39.7mm in diameter but just 9.08 mm thick, lending it a dressy character despite its larger size. The riveted bezel and eight-sided cabochon crown immediately identify it as a Santos, as does the matching gold bracelet whose screws extend the bezel motif across the wrist. But fear not: for $77K, you also get a second matte-grey alligator leather strap for a slightly more subtle wearing experience. This versatility is a hallmark of the modern Santos collection, which features the "QuickSwitch" system, allowing owners to swap between metal and leather without the need for specialized tools.
The Santos is certainly having a multi-year moment. Ever since Cartier added several impressive new complicated pieces to the collection in 2024, collectors have begun taking increased notice. Though the original Santos was designed for its namesake male aviator, the collection—which spans the more elegant Santos-Dumont and Kelce’s sportier Santos de Cartier—is popular with both men and women, which makes it the perfect collection to feature on the wrists of the most popular couple on Earth. With more Santos models and references in existence than you can shake a stick at, the good news is that anyone can find one that fits their particular tastes: steel or gold, large or small, simple or complicated, dressy or sporty. If the rumors are to be believed, the couple’s appreciation for the brand was even a centerpiece of their recent nuptials; guests at the Swift-Kelce wedding reportedly participated in a raffle that included luxury watches and a vintage 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle—the same model that the couple drove together during their first date.
While the Kelce-Swift duo dominates the Cartier conversation, other A-listers are pushing the boundaries of horology with even more extravagant pieces. We hope that Dwayne Johnson had a few bodyguards nearby while receiving the Disney Legends award this past week in Anaheim. Because on his wrist was the Jacob & Co. Billionaire Ashoka, a diamond-studded watch worth some $3.3M. A limited edition of only 18 pieces, its 18K white gold case and bracelet are dripping in baguette-cut diamonds, while its dial shows off the skeletonized Jacob & Co. cal. JCAM23 hand-wound movement. The "Ashoka" cut is a proprietary diamond shape inspired by a legendary 413-carat diamond, known for its unique 62 facets that make the stone appear larger and more brilliant than a traditional emerald cut.
The Billionaire watch is becoming a popular choice for celebrities hoping to make a statement of absolute financial dominance. Maluma wore an emerald-studded version to the Met Gala last year, while DJ Khaled had one on his wrist at the 2022 Oscars. For "The Rock," the watch represents a shift from his usual rugged, utilitarian timepieces toward the realm of "haute joaillerie." Jacob & Co. has carved out a niche as the go-to brand for the ultra-wealthy who find traditional Swiss brands too conservative, offering watches that are as much about gem-setting as they are about timekeeping.
On the more classical side of the spectrum, Chris Evans made a notable appearance at the D23 Ultimate Disney Fan Event in Anaheim. Appearing alongside Robert Downey Jr. and Hayley Atwell, the "Captain America" star wore one of the most respected watches in history: the Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC) Reverso. His version of the early 1930s reversible watch, the Tribute Monoface Small Seconds, caught lots of attention upon its debut at Watches and Wonders 2025. Made of pink gold, it features a matching, thin mesh bracelet as well as a matching golden grained dial.
The Reverso was originally invented for British army officers in India who wanted a watch that could survive the rigors of a polo match; the case flips over to protect the glass. Inside Evans’ model is JLC’s cal. 822 movement, whose hand-wound operation calls back to that of the original 1931 Reverso. Flip over the case, meanwhile, and you’ll find a blank caseback perfect for engraving—a feature that has made the Reverso a favorite for marking life milestones. Evans’ choice reflects a "quiet luxury" aesthetic, prioritizing heritage and craftsmanship over overt flashiness.
Meanwhile, the sports world continues to prove its horological mettle. Phoenix Suns shooting guard Devin Booker knows how to look fly courtside—just check out the killer Cartier he wore to a Phoenix Mercury game this week while sitting next to team owner Mat Ishbia. Far from a stock Tank or Santos, his Cartier Crash is part of a run of 400 pieces made in 1991 and sold at the firm’s Paris boutique. The Crash is one of the most enigmatic designs in history, famously rumored to have been inspired by a Cartier Baignoire Allongée watch that had been mangled in a car crash—though the true story likely involves a more intentional avant-garde design push in 1960s London.
Crafted from 18K yellow gold, Booker’s piece features the model’s familiar warped case, Roman-numeral dial with blued steel sword hands, a hand-wound movement, and a simple black leather strap. At 22mm in diameter, it wears small, giving it the elegant character that has captivated so much horological mindshare the past five years. Indeed, while we may be long past "Peak Crash" in terms of the initial auction frenzy, there’s simply no stopping this unique watch from dominating the headlines. Booker’s decision to wear a 1991 Paris edition rather than a modern reissue speaks to his status as a serious collector who understands the nuances of vintage provenance.
Finally, the pinnacle of celebrity watch customization was reached this week by Drake. The rapper showed off a unique one-of-one Cosmograph Daytona made especially for him by Rolex. Fitted with a stunning gradient of pavé diamonds and sapphires, it’s thought to be amongst the most expensive Rollies ever made—though of course, its true value is impossible to estimate. Transitioning from clear diamond to blue sapphire throughout the clasp, bezel, and dial, the watch is arguably more fascinating for what it represents rather than as a physical timekeeper.
Rolex is famously conservative and is not known for making "pièces uniques" (one-of-a-kind pieces) for anyone, regardless of their wealth. Typically, even the most high-profile clients must choose from the brand’s existing catalog. That the "Crown" did so for Drake tells you something about his cultural importance, as well as his importance to Rolex as a client. This "Ice Gradient" Daytona is a masterclass in factory gem-setting, a process where Rolex’s in-house gemologists select and set every stone by hand to ensure a perfect color transition. It is a symbol of a new era where the world’s most powerful brands are willing to break their own rules for the world’s most powerful influencers.
From the "Swift Effect" driving retail frenzies to Drake’s untouchable custom Rolex, the current landscape of celebrity watch culture is more diverse and technically sophisticated than ever before. Whether it is the historical elegance of a JLC Reverso or the avant-garde distortion of a Cartier Crash, these timepieces are no longer just tools for telling time; they are the primary instruments through which the modern elite broadcast their taste, their history, and their status to the world.
