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the Ego
Has Landed DeLaCour’s new timepiece, the Mourinho City Ego, marks the start of its partnership with the controversial Portuguese coach
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or most companies, brand ambassadors or spokespersons are based in part on their prominence and visibility, as well as the alignment of ideals with the firm. Sports stars, Hollywood celebrities and international superstars number among the choices of ambassadors, but rarely do we ever see a sports coach being named a brand ambassador — unless, of course, it is a character as undoubtedly charismatic as José Mourinho. Mourinho is an iconic figure in the sports world, the mainland European equivalent of Sir Alex Ferguson. Renowned for his fiery temper, he is more frequently seen in the sports pages of international newspapers than his players, lambasting their performance on the field or the
DELACOUR MOURINHO CITY EGO COLLECTION
REVOLUTION H 158
Movement Automatic Swiss-made movement; 44-hour power reserve Case 58mm × 54mm; rose gold or titanium with DLC; water resistant to 50m Strap Rubber
officials who refereed the game. Mourinho is every bit the urbane, if slightly vehement and vocal, sports celebrity; it explains why Pierre Koukjian, the creative genius behind deLaCour, elected the Portuguese manager of Real Madrid as the new face of deLaCour timepieces, with a special timepiece designed for soccer.
Koukjian explains, “DeLaCour isn’t a brand that adheres to the mainstream. We don’t want to do what everyone else does. When we first came up with the Bichrono, it was something brand new, that no one had tried before. Then we had the Birepetition and the Bitourbillon. Mourinho shares similar ideals with deLaCour; he is bold, forward-thinking, always trying to create something new with his work. That’s why we chose him as an ambassador.” The Mourinho City Ego timepiece is built to facilitate the timing of soccer games, with central chronograph seconds and a 60-minute totalizer that runs on the main dial. An exposed honeycomb design on the dial of the watch reveals only hints of the movement at work underneath, and the entire dial experiences a twinkling effect as the gear train moves beneath. The honeycomb design, partially inspired by the soccer ball, also serves a practical purpose: the structure, found also in beehives, is known to be one of the strongest natural structures in the world, thus it protects the timepiece against a certain amount of shock. The central 60-minute totalizer is not commonly seen in chronographs (most have 30-minute totalizers), but with the Mourinho City Ego, it is clearly indicated by a red arrow pointer on the main dial, with the last 15 minutes of the counter marked in blue, to indicate the run into overtime or injury time after each 45-minute half of the soccer match. There are also two subcounters with two-ended pointers for the small seconds counter and 24-hour totalizer, as well
as a power reserve indicator that isn’t an arc like most other watch designs, but a complete circular counter. Finally, a small date aperture is displayed at the one o’clock position, with the date disc just barely visible behind the dial. The typical widened tonneau form of the deLaCour watch offers a balance of negative space on the dial, with great comfort on the wrist even though the watch is immense by regular definitions. Two variations of the watch exist, one of which is a sports-driven model in lightweight black titanium; the alternative is more prestigious in rose gold, but protecting the case is a bezel in graphite, highly durable and resistant to most extreme environments. The titanium model is deceptively light; the watch may be rather bulky, but it never feels at all difficult to handle. On the partnership with deLaCour, Mourinho commented that he was “embarking on this project because I liked the brand. I give little importance to sponsorship opportunities; I can live without them. Except when something captivates me, as deLaCour has.” Regardless of its soccer associations, the Mourinho City Ego watch will appeal to those who enjoy Koukjian’s designs. As a sportsinspired timepiece, the City Ego may not sound like a rugged watch; in fact, most of the City Ego pieces have been hefty dress timepieces, but the Mourinho City Ego has the grand approval of Europe’s soccer maestro who has orchestrated some of the most strategic match victories in the last decade. H
REVOLUTION H 159
By DARREN HO