Last updated: 19 October 2026. The facts reflect the sources as they stood on that date.
This page lists 36 dated ties between ten luxury watch brands and motorsport, aviation, the navy, space and sailing. Each has a source beside it. Twenty-five of them rest only on the account of the brand or Formula 1 itself, and four rest on a single outside source, one of them Wikipedia. The other seven have two or more sources.
The timeline
Sources: P is the brand or Formula 1 itself, S a reputable outside source, W Wikipedia or another wiki. A row with only a P source is the brand’s own account.
| Year | Brand | Counterparty | Field | What happened | Type | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1904 | Cartier | Alberto Santos-Dumont (aviator) | Aviation | Cartier says Louis Cartier made a watch for Santos-Dumont so that he could read the time while flying, and describes it as one of the first wristwatches ever made. | Made for or issued to | One-off | Cartier (P) |
| 1930 | Rolex | Sir Malcolm Campbell | Motorsport | Rolex says its motor-sport links began with Campbell, who wore a Rolex Oyster and set the world land speed record nine times between 1924 and 1935. | Person or ambassador | Not confirmed | Rolex (P) |
| 1931 | Longines | US Army Air Corps | Aviation | The US Army Air Corps approved the Weems second-setting pilot’s watch in August 1931. Longines says Charles Lindbergh and Philip Van Horn Weems designed it, and that it stayed in service until 1946. | Approved or qualified by | Ended (1946) | Longines (P) |
| 1936 | Panerai | Italian Royal Navy | Navy | Panerai’s own history dates its work for the Italian Royal Navy to 1936 to 1992. It says Giuseppe Panerai commissioned prototype diving watches in 1935 for the Navy’s new underwater assault vehicles and operators, and that regular supply followed in the 1940s. | Made for or issued to | Not confirmed | Panerai (P) |
| 1948 | IWC | Royal Air Force | Aviation | IWC developed the Mark 11 for Royal Air Force pilots and navigators, with a soft-iron inner case against magnetic fields in the cockpit. IWC says British navigators relied on it for three decades. | Made for or issued to | Not confirmed | IWC (P) |
| 1952 | Breitling | Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) | Aviation | Breitling made the Navitimer at AOPA’s request. The first version carried no Breitling branding and went only to AOPA members; it was sold to the public from late 1955. | Made for or issued to | Not confirmed | Breitling (P) |
| 1956 | Panerai | Egyptian Navy | Navy | The GPF 2/56, later nicknamed the “Egiziano”, was developed for the Egyptian Navy with the Italian Navy’s consent, according to Panerai. | Made for or issued to | Not confirmed | Panerai (P) |
| 1959 | Rolex | Daytona International Speedway | Motorsport | Rolex says it has been a partner of Daytona International Speedway since the track opened. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ongoing | Rolex (P) |
| 1963 | TAG Heuer | Carrera Panamericana (race) | Motorsport | Jack Heuer named the Heuer Carrera after the Carrera Panamericana, the Mexican road race run from 1950 to 1954. | Named after | Not applicable | TAG Heuer (P) |
| 1963 | Rolex | Daytona International Speedway | Motorsport | Rolex named its new chronograph the Cosmograph Daytona to symbolise its connection with the Daytona track. | Named after | Not applicable | Rolex (P) |
| 1965 | Omega | NASA | Space | NASA invited four watch brands to submit chronographs and qualified the Omega Speedmaster for manned missions on 1 March 1965. Omega says it is still the only watch qualified by NASA and other space agencies for spacewalks. | Approved or qualified by | Not confirmed | Omega (P) |
| 1968 | Rolex | Jackie Stewart | Motorsport | Jackie Stewart became a Rolex Testimonee in 1968, and Rolex describes him as a three-time Formula 1 world champion. | Person or ambassador | Not confirmed | Rolex (P); Rolex (P) |
| 1969 | TAG Heuer | Jo Siffert (driver) and Formula 1 | Motorsport | Formula 1 says Heuer was the first luxury brand to have its logo on a Formula 1 car, in 1969. TAG Heuer credits its sponsorship of the Swiss driver Jo Siffert. | Person or ambassador | Not confirmed | Formula 1 (P); TAG Heuer (P) |
| 1969 | Rolex | Paul Newman, film Winning | Motorsport | Paul Newman starred as a racing driver in the film Winning, released in 1969. Rolex says his wife, Joanne Woodward, gave him a Cosmograph Daytona just before filming began, engraved “Drive carefully, me”. | Screen | Not applicable | Rolex (P); Wikipedia (W) |
| 1971 | TAG Heuer | Scuderia Ferrari | Motorsport | TAG Heuer and Formula 1 both say Heuer was the first watch brand to sponsor a Formula 1 team. It began with Ferrari in 1971, when Ferrari needed timing for its Fiorano test track, and ran to 1979. | Team partner | Ended (1979) | TAG Heuer (P); Formula 1 (P) |
| 1971 | TAG Heuer | Steve McQueen, film Le Mans | Motorsport | Steve McQueen wore a Heuer Monaco in the film Le Mans, released in 1971. | Screen | Not applicable | TAG Heuer (P); Wikipedia (W) |
| Early 1980s | Breitling | Frecce Tricolori (Italian Air Force aerobatic team) | Aviation | Breitling says the Frecce Tricolori needed a new chronograph, and the Chronomat was made for them. Crystals recessed in the bezel and protected by four “rider tabs” became its signature. | Made for or issued to | Not confirmed | Breitling (P) |
| 1980 | Longines | Scuderia Ferrari | Motorsport | Italian Watch Spotter says Longines’ relationship with Ferrari began in 1980 and ran through the decade, with the Longines logo on Ferrari cars up to the 1989 season. | Team partner | Ended (about 1989) | Italian Watch Spotter (S) |
| 1982 | Longines | Formula 1 | Motorsport | The FHH says Longines became the first official timekeeper of Formula 1 in 1982 and held the role for ten years. Italian Watch Spotter dates it 1982 to 1991, alongside Olivetti. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ended (1991 or 1992) | FHH (S); Italian Watch Spotter (S) |
| 1985 | TAG Heuer | McLaren | Motorsport | Heuer joined TAG and, as TAG Heuer, began sponsoring McLaren. Formula 1 dates it from 1985, TAG Heuer’s partnership page from 1986, and both say it ended in 2015. | Team partner | Ended (2015) | Formula 1 (P); TAG Heuer (P) |
| 1986 | TAG Heuer | Formula 1 (the name) | Motorsport | The TAG Heuer Formula 1 collection launched. In an interview published by Hodinkee, the project was called a “diving watch for young people”, and the Formula 1 name was added during development. | Named after | Not applicable | TAG Heuer (P); Hodinkee (S) |
| 1992 | Rolex | 24 Hours of Daytona | Motorsport | Rolex became title sponsor of the 24 Hours of Daytona, which has been called the Rolex 24 At Daytona ever since. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ongoing | Rolex 2016 brochure (P); Rolex (P) |
| 1992 to 2003 | TAG Heuer | Formula 1 | Motorsport | TAG Heuer was Official Timekeeper of Formula 1. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ended (2003) | TAG Heuer (P) |
| 2004 | Rolex | Goodwood Revival | Motorsport | Rolex became Official Timekeeper of the Goodwood Revival, the classic-car race meeting held in West Sussex. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ongoing | Rolex (P) |
| 2005 | Panerai | Scuderia Ferrari | Motorsport | Italian Watch Spotter says Panerai became Official Timekeeper to Ferrari in 2005, through the Richemont group, with a “Ferrari engineered by Panerai” collection, and that the partnership ran to 2010. | Team partner | Ended (2010) | Italian Watch Spotter (S) |
| 2010 | Hublot | Formula 1 | Motorsport | Wikipedia reports Hublot was appointed Official Watchmaker of Formula 1 in March 2010. The FHH and Italian Watch Spotter also date Hublot’s turn to 2010 and say Rolex took over in 2013. | Official partner or timekeeper | Not confirmed | Wikipedia (W); FHH (S); Italian Watch Spotter (S) |
| 2012 | Hublot | Scuderia Ferrari | Motorsport | Wikipedia reports Hublot became Ferrari’s Official Watch and Official Timekeeper from 1 January 2012, and says it was no longer listed among Ferrari’s sponsors from 2021. | Team partner | Not confirmed (last seen 2020) | Wikipedia (W) |
| 2013 | Rolex | Formula 1 | Motorsport | Rolex’s 2016 press brochure lists Formula 1 under 2013, and the FHH says Rolex took over as official timekeeper that year. Italian Watch Spotter lists Rolex as Formula 1 Global Partner and Official Timepiece from 2013. Reuters reports TAG Heuer replaced it for the 2025 season. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ended (2024) | Rolex 2016 brochure (P); FHH (S); Italian Watch Spotter (S); Reuters (S) |
| 2013 | IWC | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team | Motorsport | IWC says it has been Official Engineering Partner of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One team since 2013. | Team partner | Ongoing | IWC (P) |
| 2016 | TAG Heuer | Red Bull Racing | Motorsport | TAG Heuer says it has been Official Timekeeper and Partner of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team since 2016. | Team partner | Ongoing | TAG Heuer (P) |
| 2016 | Bell & Ross | Renault Formula 1 team | Motorsport | The FHH reported in 2019 that Bell & Ross was in its fourth year with the Renault Formula 1 team, which puts the start at 2016. | Team partner | Not confirmed (last seen 2019) | FHH (S) |
| 2017 | Panerai | 35th America’s Cup (Oracle and SoftBank teams) | Sailing | Panerai was the official partner of the 35th America’s Cup and partnered with the Oracle and SoftBank teams, by its own account. | Official partner or timekeeper | Not confirmed | Panerai (P) |
| 2020 | Panerai | Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team (36th America’s Cup) | Sailing | Panerai says it partnered with Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team for the 36th America’s Cup. | Team partner | Not confirmed | Panerai (P) |
| 2025 | TAG Heuer | Formula 1 (LVMH deal) | Motorsport | TAG Heuer returned as Official Timekeeper of Formula 1, replacing Rolex, as part of a ten-year deal between Formula 1 and LVMH announced on 6 January 2025. | Official partner or timekeeper | Ongoing | Formula 1 (P); Reuters (S) |
| 2025 | TAG Heuer | Grand Prix de Monaco | Motorsport | TAG Heuer says it became the first title partner of the Monaco Grand Prix in February 2025. | Official partner or timekeeper | Not confirmed | TAG Heuer (P) |
| 2026 | Breitling | Aston Martin and the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One team | Motorsport | Breitling became Official Watch Partner of Aston Martin and its Formula 1 team from February 2026. Its first team watch is a Navitimer limited to 1,959 pieces, for the year Aston Martin entered Formula 1. | Team partner | Ongoing | Breitling (P) |
How to read this timeline
The ten brands are Rolex, Omega, Breitling, Hublot, Panerai, IWC, Cartier, TAG Heuer (called Heuer before it joined TAG), Longines and Bell & Ross. A row goes in only when it names a specific team, series, force, person or film, or a model named after one. Space and sailing are included where the same brands took part. It does not cover every Formula 1 sponsor. The navy section is thin because only Panerai’s navy work is documented well enough to include.
A brand’s own page is the best evidence of what it did, but it is still the brand describing itself, so a row with only a P source rests on its own account. S is a reputable outside source, such as Reuters, the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) or Italian Watch Spotter. W is Wikipedia or the Formula 1 Wiki, used for a lead we could not confirm on a brand or Formula 1 page.
The table has seven types of tie: official partner or timekeeper, team partner, made for or issued to, approved or qualified by, named after, person or ambassador, and screen. The status is ongoing, ended (with the year), one-off or not confirmed. Names and films have no status, so they say “not applicable”. We say “ongoing” or “ended” only where a source says so.
By brand
One line per brand. Each brand name links to our page for selling that brand.
| Brand | Rows | First entry in this timeline | Fields | Latest entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rolex | 8 | 1930, Sir Malcolm Campbell | Motorsport | 2013 to 2024, Formula 1 timekeeper; Rolex 24 At Daytona and Goodwood Revival ties continue |
| Omega | 1 | 1965, NASA | Space | 1965, NASA qualification (the only row) |
| Breitling | 3 | 1952, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) | Aviation, Motorsport | 2026, Aston Martin Official Watch Partner |
| TAG Heuer | 10 | 1963, Carrera Panamericana (race) | Motorsport | 2025, Official Timekeeper of Formula 1 |
| Hublot | 2 | 2010, Formula 1 | Motorsport | 2012, Ferrari (not confirmed since 2020) |
| Panerai | 5 | 1936, Italian Royal Navy | Motorsport, Navy, Sailing | 2020, Luna Rossa, America’s Cup |
| IWC | 2 | 1948, Royal Air Force | Aviation, Motorsport | 2013, Mercedes-AMG Petronas, ongoing |
| Cartier | 1 | 1904, Alberto Santos-Dumont (aviator) | Aviation | 1904, Santos-Dumont (the only row, Cartier’s own account) |
| Longines | 3 | 1931, US Army Air Corps | Aviation, Motorsport | 1982, Formula 1 timekeeper (per the FHH) |
| Bell & Ross | 1 | 2016, Renault Formula 1 team | Motorsport | 2016, Renault Formula 1 team (last seen 2019) |
Questions people ask
These are questions Google shows for searches on this topic. Each answer uses only the rows above.
Which watch brand is the official timekeeper of Formula 1?
TAG Heuer, from 2025. It replaced Rolex, which held the role from 2013 to 2024, as part of a ten-year deal between Formula 1 and LVMH announced on 6 January 2025.
Which watch brands are partnered with Formula 1 teams?
In this table, TAG Heuer says it is with Red Bull Racing (since 2016), IWC with Mercedes-AMG Petronas (since 2013, as Official Engineering Partner) and Breitling with Aston Martin (since February 2026). Older ties include Heuer with Ferrari (1971 to 1979), TAG Heuer with McLaren (to 2015), Longines (1980 to about 1989) and Panerai (2005 to 2010) with Ferrari, and, less firmly sourced, Hublot with Ferrari and Bell & Ross with Renault.
What is the history of TAG Heuer’s Formula 1 watches?
Heuer sponsored Ferrari from 1971, and TAG Heuer joined McLaren in the mid-1980s. The TAG Heuer Formula 1 collection launched in 1986. TAG Heuer was Official Timekeeper of Formula 1 from 1992 to 2003 and again from 2025. In an interview published by Hodinkee, the Formula 1 watch project was called a “diving watch for young people”.
What was the first pilot watch?
This page cannot settle it. Cartier says Louis Cartier made a watch for the aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont in 1904 so that he could read the time while flying, and calls it one of the first wristwatches. The next aviation row in the table is the Longines Weems pilot’s watch, approved by the US Army Air Corps in August 1931, by Longines’ own account. Each is the brand describing itself, so this page does not rank them.
What watch does the Italian Navy use?
We cannot say what the Navy is issued today. Panerai’s own history covers its work for the Italian Royal Navy from 1936 to 1992, with prototype diving watches commissioned in 1935 and regular supply from the 1940s.
More from Watch Boutique
- Luxury watch brands we buy: the full list of the 13 brands, including the three with no entry in this timeline.
- How selling a watch to us works: the steps from first message to payment.
- About Watch Boutique and Ben Steele: who we are.
Where sources disagree
These are left as the sources give them. We did not pick a winner.
- Who was Formula 1’s timekeeper, and when. Watch sources list watch brands: Longines from 1982 (the FHH says ten years, Italian Watch Spotter says to 1991), TAG Heuer from 1992 to 2003 (TAG Heuer’s own page), Hublot from 2010 (the FHH and Italian Watch Spotter), Rolex from 2013 to 2024, and TAG Heuer again from 2025. The Formula 1 Wiki, a community site, starts the role in 1992 and lists Siemens for 2004 to 2007 and LG for 2008 to 2012. Italian Watch Spotter also says technology companies held the role between TAG Heuer and Hublot. The sources may mean different things by timekeeper. We could not settle which list is the official one from a primary source, so the table follows the watch sources, and we do not say who held the role between 2004 and 2009. Wikipedia calls Hublot’s 2010 role “Official Watchmaker”.
- Who was first. Formula 1 says Heuer was the first luxury brand with its logo on a Formula 1 car (1969), and both Formula 1 and TAG Heuer say it was the first watch brand to sponsor a team (1971). Longines, per the FHH, was the first official timekeeper (1982), which the Formula 1 Wiki’s 1992 start does not fit. These are different “firsts”, and each is attributed in its row.
- McLaren. Formula 1 dates TAG Heuer’s deal to 1985 and TAG Heuer’s own partnership page dates it to 1986. Both say it ended in 2015.
- Hublot. The Ferrari date comes from Wikipedia alone, not from Hublot or Ferrari. The Formula 1 role is also reported by the FHH and Italian Watch Spotter. Treat the Hublot rows as the least firm in the table.
Brands left out
We also looked for Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Grand Seiko, the other three brands we buy. We did not find a documented motorsport, aviation or navy partnership that fits this page, so they are not in it. If you know of one with a source, tell us and we will add it.
Sources and method
Method.
- A row needs a named team, series, force, agency, institution, person or film, or a model named after one.
- A brand or Formula 1 source is used first. Outside sources check it or fill gaps.
- Where sources disagree, we show both. Years no source covers are left out.
- We say nothing about prices or values.
- Watch Boutique is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, any watch brand, team or organisation named here.
Sources, accessed 19 October 2026.
- Rolex: Behind the crown, partners; Cosmograph Daytona, beyond the racetrack; Rolex and motor sport, classic cars; Cosmograph Daytona press brochure, 2016 (P)
- TAG Heuer: Formula 1 partnership; 1958 to 1969 history; Red Bull Racing; Formula 1 collection history (P)
- Formula 1: TAG Heuer becomes Official Timekeeper, 6 January 2025; TAG Heuer returns to Formula 1 (P)
- Omega: 1965, NASA tests and qualifies the Speedmaster (P)
- Breitling: Navitimer; Collections, Chronomat; Aston Martin partnership (P)
- Cartier: Santos-Dumont watch (P)
- IWC: 85-year legacy of pilot’s watches; Mercedes-AMG Petronas team watch, 16 January 2025 (P)
- Panerai: History of Panerai (P)
- Longines: Philip Van Horn Weems, Pioneer Spirit (P)
- Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie: Watch brands and Formula 1, 3 May 2019 (S)
- Italian Watch Spotter: Time to win: all the watches of Formula 1, 4 September 2026 (S)
- Formula 1 Wiki (Fandom): Timekeeper (W)
- Reuters: Tag Heuer replaces Rolex as official timekeeper of F1, 6 January 2025 (S)
- Hodinkee: The surprising origins of TAG Heuer’s Formula 1 watches (S)
- Wikipedia: Hublot; Le Mans (film); Winning (film) (W)
Corrections and updates
Team deals and timekeeping roles change, so we revisit this page at least once a year.
- 19 October 2026: first version, 36 entries.
If you spot a wrong date or have a better source, please contact us with the row and the link.
To cite this page: Watch Boutique, “Motorsport, Aviation and Navy Watch Partnerships: A Dated Timeline”, https://watchboutique.uk/motorsport-aviation-navy-watch-timeline/, last updated 19 October 2026.
If you own one of these watches
If you own a watch from one of these brands, send a few photos through our valuation page and Ben will tell you what it is worth. We work by appointment, so please contact us first.